After Trump made the announcement, Oman said it had mediated a ceasefire deal between the Houthis and the US
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President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday the US will stop bombing the Houthis in Yemen, saying that the Iran-aligned group had agreed to stop interrupting important shipping lanes in the Middle East.
After Trump made the announcement, Oman said it had mediated a ceasefire deal between the Houthis and the US, marking a major shift in the Iran-aligned group’s policy since the start of Israel’s war in Gaza in October 2023.
Under the agreement, neither the US nor the Houthis would target the other, including US vessels in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait, Oman said in a statement. The statement from Oman did not mention whether the Houthis had agreed to stop attacks on Israel.
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“They said please don’t bomb us any more and we’re not going to attack your ships,” Trump said of the Houthis during an Oval Office meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
“And I will accept their word, and we are going to stop the bombing of the Houthis effective immediately.”
The US intensified strikes on Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis this year, to stop attacks on Red Sea shipping. Rights activists have raised concerns over civilian casualties.
Houthi officials did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment
The Houthis have been firing at Israel and at shipping in the Red Sea since Israel began its military offensive against Hamas in Gaza after the Palestinian militant group’s deadly attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
Trump said Washington will take the Houthis’ word that they would not be blowing up ships any longer.
The U.S. military has said it has struck more than 1,000 targets since its c