Trump strikes Yemen: Iran-backed Houthis, U.S. both vow escalation; death toll rises to 53

U.S. airstrikes target Houthi rebels in Yemen, escalating tensions with Iran, sparking fears of further conflict in the region.

The United States and Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen are both vowing escalation after the U.S. launched airstrikes to deter the rebels from attacking military and commercial vessels on one of the world's busiest shipping corridors.

The Houthi-run Health Ministry said the U.S. strikes killed at least 53 people, including five women and two children, and wounded almost 100 in the capital of Sanaa and other provinces, including Saada, the rebels’ stronghold on the border with Saudi Arabia.

Also read: U.S. hits Yemen; issues new warning to Houthi rebels highlights

“We’re not going to have these people controlling which ships can go through and which ones cannot. And so your question is, how long will this go on? It will go on until they no longer have the capability to do that," U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told CBS on Sunday (March 16, 2025).

U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday (March 15, 2025) vowed to use “overwhelming lethal force” until the Houthis cease their attacks, and warned that Tehran would be held “fully accountable” for their actions.

The Houthis have repeatedly targeted shipping in the Red Sea, sinking two vessels, in what they call acts of solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza, where Israel has been at war with Hamas, another Iranian ally. The attacks stopped when a Israel-Hamas ceasefire took hold in January — a day before Mr. Trump took office — but last week the Houthis said they would renew attacks against Israeli vessels after Israel cut off the flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza this month.

There have been no Houthi attacks reported since then.