Houthi Official Says Group Will Not Target U.S. Ships in the Red Sea

A senior Houthi official warned countries not to join Saudi Arabia in Yemen’s renewed civil war. According to Sina Finance, Mohammed al-Bukhaiti said the Houthis had assured the Trump administration that they would not attack U.S. ships in the Red Sea. Al-Bukhaiti said Washington made contact after Houthi forces advanced rapidly toward the Bab al-Mandab Strait along Yemen’s western coast earlier this month. He said the Houthis would not target the United States or any other country in the strait, except Saudi Arabia, and that the position remained unchanged. U.S. President Donald Trump said over the weekend that his administration had “engaged in dialogue” with the Houthis, without saying when. He said the Houthis had contacted the United States first and did not want war, adding that they preferred the United States not intervene and to allow most ships to pass. Reports later cited a Houthi official and another person familiar with the talks as saying Oman hosted meetings between U.S. and Houthi representatives last weekend. Al-Bukhaiti only confirmed indirect contact through Oman, which he said had long mediated between the Houthis and the Trump administration. He said the Houthis’ military goal was not to close the Bab al-Mandab Strait, but to secure freedom of navigation for all countries, including Yemen. He also said attacks on neighboring Saudi Arabia would continue until Riyadh lifted its 10-year blockade on Houthi-controlled areas and allowed ships into Houthi-held Red Sea ports.