Houthis Weakened but Not Broken by First Round of Trump Strikes
wsj-logo
WSJ
Mar 28, 2025 08:51 AM IST
The Iran-backed militia is still firing missiles almost every day at Israel and maintains the ability to harass commercial shipping lanes.
American strikes on Yemen’s Houthis have destroyed military infrastructure and killed commanders and officials, an effort President Trump called “unbelievably successful.” But they haven’t achieved the campaign’s goal: deterring the U.S.-designated terrorist group.
Houthis Weakened but Not Broken by First Round of Trump Strikes PREMIUM
Houthis Weakened but Not Broken by First Round of Trump Strikes
The Iran-backed militia—which controls a swath of Yemen—continues to get off near-daily missile attacks on Israel. Most commercial ship traffic is still being redirected to the long way around southern Africa and away from the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, underscoring the stakes for U.S. credibility as a guarantor of freedom of navigation on the high seas.
Trump and his allies have highlighted the attacks’ success as they dismiss concerns over the use of the nongovernmental messaging app Signal to discuss secret military plans to strike the Houthis.
Yemeni officials and close observers of the war there said nearly two weeks of U.S. strikes have shown mixed results. And they said airstrikes alone wouldn’t defeat the Houthis. “Good, but not good enough,” said one official with the internationally recognized Yemeni government, which is fighting a civil war with the Houthis.
Since the U.S. airstrikes began March 15, the Houthis have launched missiles and drones at the USS Harry S. Truman, an aircraft carrier stationed in the Red Sea. On Thursday, the Houthis claimed another attempted attack on the carrier.
They have also resumed their attacks on Israel. On Thursday, Israeli air-defense systems intercepted two Houthi ballistic missiles, totaling seven since Israel resumed its offensive in Gaza on March 18, after talks to extend a two-month cease-fire collapsed.
“The American aggression against us will not affect our capabilities,” Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said in a televised address Thursday night.
In response to questions from The Wall Street Journal, a U.S. defense official said that the military had confirmed the deaths of several Houthi leaders and that whatever capacity to strike the Houthis maintained, “It is largely because of the nearly 10 years of support provided by Iran.”
“They are well-known for false claims minimizing the results of our attacks while exaggerating the successes of theirs,” the official said. “Their messaging depends on lies.”
Trump administration officials have said their campaign against the Houthis is a major step up from the strikes the Biden administration undertook with the U.K. to stop the group from firing on commercial vessels sailing through the Bab el Mandeb, the strait connecting the Gulf of Aden to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal.
This time, the U.S. tactics are different, analysts said. In the Pentagon’s last news briefing on the campaign on March 17, U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Alexus Grynkewich said an initial wave of airstrikes hit more than 30 Houthi targets, including “terrorist training sites, unmanned aerial vehicle infrastructure, weapons manufacturing capabilities and weapons storage facilities.” At least 41 Houthis have reportedly been killed in the airstrikes targeting leadership compounds, military bases, tunnel networks, air defenses and government buildings housing personnel.
According to Yemenis in the country, airstrikes continued Thursday night and were some of the most intense of the campaign.
The U.S. strikes appear to be focused on targeting the Houthis’s top leadership. Many of the strikes have hit Saa’da, Yemen’s northernmost province and the Houthis’s homeland.
The Biden administration had refrained from going after Houthi leaders, instead deploying cruise missiles and airstrikes against missile-launch points and other military sites. Ultimately, those strikes failed to stop the Houthi attacks on cargo ships and against Israel.
“U.S. attacks have become more coordinated, hitting multiple targets, in different regions simultaneously,” said Mohammed al-Basha, founder of U.S.-based Middle East security advisory Basha Report. “Early signs suggest Houthi missile launches are down, but the group is expected to adapt and continue its campaign.”
Houthi spokesman Mohammed al-Bukhaiti told the Al Jazeera network recently that the group had suffered material and human losses, without disclosing the extent of the damage. He dismissed the idea that the losses would affect the group’s attacks on U.S. aircraft carriers and Israel, maintaining that operations will continue unless the war in Gaza ends.
Houthi leaders have reduced their presence on social media, reportedly after Abdul Malik al-Houthi ordered them to avoid carrying cellphones to keep from being tracked. The Houthi’s leadership structure remains intact, and some have held news conferences.
Few analysts or officials think the Houthis can be deterred, let alone defeated, by a campaign of airstrikes alone.
Targets of the American attacks include sites in San’a.
The Houthis survived eight years of airstrikes and bombings by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and other Arab nations that used U.S. intelligence and American warplanes. The Saudi-led coalition eventually agreed to a cease-fire in 2022 with the Houthis, who control areas that are home to two-thirds of Yemen’s roughly 40 million population.
The Houthis have incentives to keep fighting. Their attacks against Red Sea shipping and Israel have bolstered the rebel group’s stature, especially as it is one of the last remaining unbowed Iran-aligned militias actively engaged in hostilities with Israel.
The Houthis have a geographic advantage that gives them confidence. Yemen, twice the size of Wyoming, is a vast nation of mountains, evoking comparisons to Afghanistan. The Houthis are widely thought to have spent years stockpiling missiles and drones, hiding them in caves or underground facilities where they have built weapons assembly lines and launching facilities.
The U.S. airstrikes have killed or injured scores of civilians and shattered civilian infrastructure, according to data collected by two independent monitoring groups. That could generate more popular support for the Houthis and more anger toward the U.S. in a country that al Qaeda operatives have used as a launchpad to stage attacks on European soil and two failed attempts to bomb targets in the U.S.
Write to Sudarsan Raghavan at sudarsan.raghavan@wsj.com
Yemen
Read breaking news, latest updates from US, UK, Pakistan and other countries across the world on topics related to politics,crime, and national affairs.
Read breaking news, latest updates from US, UK, Pakistan and other countries across the world on topics related to politics,crime, and national affairs.
News / World News / Houthis Weakened but Not Broken by First Round of Trump Strikes
See Less
For evolved readers seeking more than just news
Subscribe now to unlock this article and access exclusive content to stay ahead
E-paper | Expert Analysis & Opinion | Geopolitics | Sports | Games
Subscribe Now @1199/year