U.S. reaches ceasefire deal with Yemen's Houthis, Trump says

The Iran-backed Houthis said they would stop attacking important shipping routes in the Red Sea

WASHINGTON,— The United States will stop bombing Yemen’s Houthi forces following a ceasefire deal brokered by Oman, President Donald Trump said Tuesday, in a shift after months of intensified strikes on the Iran-backed group.

Oman’s foreign ministry confirmed it mediated the agreement, which stops mutual targeting between the U.S. military and Houthis, including U.S. naval vessels in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait.

The statement from Oman did not say whether Houthi attacks on Israel would end. Houthi Supreme Political Council head Mahdi al-Mashat said the group would continue supporting Gaza, with Al Masirah TV quoting him: “To all Zionists, from today, stay in shelters or leave; your government cannot protect you.”

Separately, Houthi supreme revolutionary committee chief Mohammed Ali al-Houthi said the U.S. “halt of aggression” would be assessed, according to a message posted on X.

The U.S. had ramped up military action against the Houthis this year, aiming to protect Red Sea commercial routes. Rights groups voiced concerns over civilian deaths.

“They asked us not to bomb anymore and said they wouldn’t hit our ships,” Trump told reporters at the White House, during talks with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. “We will take them at their word and stop the bombing immediately.”

Statements from Qatar and Kuwait welcomed the deal, expressing hope it would safeguard maritime navigation.

The Houthis have been launching missiles at Israel and attacking shipping in the Red Sea since Israel’s offensive in Gaza began after Hamas’s October 7, 2023, Islamic State-style attack on Israeli territory.

The U.S. military has said its current Yemen campaign, dubbed Operation Rough Rider, has struck over 1,000 targets since March 15, killing hundreds of Houthi fighters and several top commanders.

Israel strikes Yemen’s Sanaa International airport, destroys aircraft, disables it completely, May 6, 2025. Photo: Screengrab/Sky News TV

Regional tensions surged after a Houthi missile landed near Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport on Sunday, triggering Israeli airstrikes on Yemen’s Hodeidah port on Monday. Israeli forces hit Sanaa airport Tuesday, their second strike on Houthi targets in two days.

Under former President Joe Biden, the U.S. and Britain launched joint strikes on Houthi positions to keep the Red Sea trade route open, a path that carries roughly 15% of global shipping. Trump did not say if Britain was part of the new ceasefire agreement.

Since Trump took office in January, he intensified military pressure on the Houthis after they vowed to resume attacks on Israeli ships traveling through key waterways including the Red Sea, Arabian Sea, Bab al-Mandab Strait, and Gulf of Aden.

(With files from Reuters)