Trump says US will stop strikes on Houthis — they have reportedly agreed not to attack ships in the Red Sea

President Donald Trump said the United States would stop bombing the Houthis in Yemen after the group agreed to stop attacking ships in the Red Sea.

Trump made this statement during a meeting in the Oval Office with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Reuters reports.

Trump announced that the Houthis had expressed their unwillingness to continue fighting, but did not elaborate on the details of this message.

"They said, please donʼt bomb us anymore, and we wonʼt attack your ships," Trump said.

When asked under what circumstances the Houthi statement was made, Trump replied that he heard it from "very, very good sources".

The Houthis have not yet given any official response.

What preceded

Houthi attacks on ships have been ongoing since late 2023, causing most Western container ships to bypass the Red Sea and take a much longer route around South Africa on voyages between Asia and Europe throughout 2024. This has increased shipping times, prices, and tariffs.

On the evening of January 15, 2025, Israel and Hamas reached an agreement on a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages. The Houthis then announced that they would voluntarily abide by the agreement and suspend attacks on ships in the Red Sea.

But on February 19 of this year, the Houthis fired a surface-to-air missile at a U.S. Air Force F-16 jet flying over the Red Sea, but missed the plane, Fox News reported. On the same day, the Houthis also attacked a U.S. military MQ-9 Reaper drone flying over Yemen outside Houthi-controlled areas, the channel reported.

In mid-March, Trump ordered the US military to "commence decisive and forceful military action" against the Houthis in Yemen.

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