The United States (US) had selected targets, identified hideouts and was all set to target the Houthis following a request by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud. But the strikes were halted at the very last moment after a change of mind of President Donald Trump, a report by The New York Times (NYT) said on Monday.
The Saudis are struggling to deal with the Houthis, the Iran-backed militia, that have launched multiple attacks on the Kingdom, including strikes on capital Riyadh and EastโWest Crude Oil Pipeline. With the Saudi defences forces failing to tackle the Yemen-based group, Salman had called on Trump on September 17 and urged him to strike in the Houthis.
But interestingly, Trump had told his advisors on September 16 that he was not in favour of striking the Houthis. However, immediately after the telephonic conversation with Salman, the 80-year-old Republican leader ordered the US military to strike the group.
Trump’s multiple U-turns
Based on his instructions, the Pentagon prepared a list of targets and the troops were ordered to carry out the strikes. However, just at the last moment, Trump reversed his decision once again and directed the US military to halt the proposed strikes, the NYT report claimed.
According to the report, senior figures of the Trump administration were against opening a front against the Houthis, as they are already engaged in dealing with the Iranians.
The Houthis have expanded their presence along Yemen’s western coast, including areas close to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, and are attacking the Saudi interests, but some of Trump aides were against expanding US military’s role in the Middle East, which eventually forced to the President to reverse his decision again, the NYT report said.
Yemen urges Trump to strike Houthis
With Houthis continuing to expand their network in the region, Yemen’s governing body head Rashad al-Alimi has held a call with Trump and requested US support, AFP reported citing sources. However, Trump did not promise any military support during the call that happened on Sunday.
Notably, Trump has also told Fox News that the Houthis have agreed not to attack the US. In fact, he has said Washington is “in constant communication with the Houthis and that they’ve agreed not to fight the United States.”
But even though Trump has refused striking the Houthis, his administration has approved a USD 24.3 billion sale of 48 F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia to help it “deter current and future threats”.
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