What to Know About the Houthi Standoff as Trump Renews US Strikes on Yemen

U.S. warplanes began striking targets across Yemen on March 15, resuming a campaign to deter Houthi attacks on vessels in the surrounding waterways.

An aircraft launches from the USS Harry S. Truman in the Red Sea before conducting airstrikes in Sana'a, Yemen, on March 15, 2025. U.S. Navy via AP

As the sun set on the Red Sea on March 15, several F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jets launched from the deck of the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman, on their way to strike Houthi targets across western Yemen for the first time in two months.

Those fighter jets delivered the first salvo in a renewed military campaign against the Houthis—a U.S.-designated terrorist group currently controlling significant portions of the country, including its capital city Sana'a.