Trump shares chilling footage of airstrike wiping out dozens of Houthi rebels in Yemen
On March 15, Trump disclosed he had directed "decisive and powerful" military strikes on the Iranian-backed group. He accused the Houthis of conducting "an unrelenting campaign of piracy, violence, and terrorism against American, and other, ships, aircraft, and drones" due to attacks on Red Sea shipping.
Trump issued a stern warning to the Houthis: "YOUR TIME IS UP, AND YOUR ATTACKS MUST STOP, STARTING TODAY. IF THEY DON'T, HELL WILL RAIN DOWN UPON YOU LIKE NOTHING YOU HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE!"
The US President has followed through on his threat by posting footage of an attack on "the Houthis" to Truth Social. The black and white video appears to come from a drone overlooking an area where people stand in a circle. The clip displays a target hovering over the group before a massive explosion occurs, sending smoke clouds into the air, with no visible survivors afterward.
Trump wrote as a caption: "These Houthis gathered for instructions on an attack. Oops, there will be no attack by these Houthis! They will never sink our ships again!" The White House also distributed the footage on its Twitter page.
The strikes have killed at least 60 people according to an Al Jazeera report on April 2. Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baqaei, criticized the US for employing such force against Yemeni people. His statement called Trump's actions a "gross violation of the principles of the UN Charter" and said Iran "strongly condemned the brutal air strikes by the US."
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also denounced the attack, declaring the Trump administration had "no authority" to dictate its foreign policy.
Trump has extended warnings to those who "support" the Houthis. In a Truth Social post, he wrote: "Support for the Houthi terrorists must end IMMEDIATELY! Do NOT threaten the American People, their President, who has received one of the largest mandates in Presidential History, or Worldwide shipping lanes. If you do, BEWARE, because America will hold you fully accountable and, we won't be nice about it!"
The rebels have responded to Trump's "escalation," announcing on national television they were preparing to attack the US in retaliation. In a statement on their Al-Masirah TV station - established by the Houthi movement - they declared: "Our Yemeni armed forces are fully prepared to confront escalation with escalation."
