Trump Halts Military Strikes On Houthis But Expert Warns Iran-backed Terrorist Group Remains Major Threat

President Donald Trump made nan astonishment announcement this week that nan U.S., aft weeks of aggravated strikes, will halt each bombing campaigns connected nan Houthis successful Yemen – but experts person warned nan Iran-backed group will not beryllium idle. 

In Trump’s Tuesday announcement from nan Oval Office, he claimed nan Houthis "just don't want to fight…and we will grant that. We will extremity nan bombings."

The president would not opportunity who provided him pinch this confirmation by nan violent network, which for years has attacked U.S. and allied ships successful nan Red Sea successful a major threat to state of navigation, but successful a laughter pursuing nan question, he replied that it came from a "very bully source."

Less than 2 hours later, Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi, nan overseas curate of Oman, took to X to say, "Following caller discussions and contacts conducted by nan Sultanate of Oman pinch nan United States and nan applicable authorities successful Sana'a, successful nan Republic of Yemen, pinch nan purpose of de-escalation, efforts person resulted successful a ceasefire statement betwixt nan 2 sides."

TRUMP CLAIMS HOUTHIS 'DON'T WANT TO FIGHT' AND SAYS US WILL STOP BOMBING CAMPAIGN

President Donald Trump, right, announced nan U.S. would extremity its bombing run against nan Houthis successful Yemen while sitting adjacent to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney successful nan Oval Office of nan White House connected Tuesday, May 6, 2025 successful Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

"In nan future, neither broadside will target nan other, including American vessels, successful nan Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait, ensuring state of navigation and nan soft travel of world commercialized shipping," he added. 

The station suggests that Oman, which has besides played an intermediary successful nan U.S.-Iran atomic talks, was heavy progressive successful securing nan ceasefire.

However, a caller study obtained by Fox News Digital up of nan president’s astonishment announcement warns that nan Trump management must stay vigilant against awesome information threats posed by nan Houthis and nan world actors supporting nan terrorist network.

The report, dubbed "The Houthi Challenge: Forging a Strategy to Defeat nan Iran-Backed Terror Group successful Yemen" by Ari Heistein for nan Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) and investigation chap astatine nan Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security, highlighted that it is not only Iran that person helped facilitate nan Houthi operational capabilities. 

While Tehran has backed nan Houthis since astatine slightest 2014 – and perchance arsenic early arsenic 2009 during nan war successful Yemen – done training and precocious weapons for illustration ballistic missiles, Oman has besides played a domiciled by allowing nan group to run from its territory and serving arsenic a cardinal smuggling way for Iranian arms.

ISRAEL CALLS TO EVACUATE YEMEN AIRPORT AMID FIGHT WITH HOUTHIS

Houthi supporters stitchery to be a rally successful protestation of nan United States' airstrikes connected Yemen and Israel's ongoing strikes successful nan Gaza Strip successful Sanaa, Yemen, connected Friday, March 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)

Jonathan Schanzer, a erstwhile coercion finance expert astatine nan U.S. Department of nan Treasury and nan existent executive head of nan FDD, called Oman's domiciled successful negotiations betwixt Washington and Middle East adversaries "outrageous." 

"To clasp them up arsenic responsible intermediaries erstwhile they are successful truth hosting nan very group that we're trying to dismantle, there's very small logic [in] this position," he told Fox News Digital.

The study recovered that Iranian arms are smuggled into Yemen done nan larboard of Hodeidah – which was targeted successful a series of Israeli strikes connected awesome infrastructure successful and astir nan Houthi-controlled superior of Sana’a this week – but besides done smaller ports aliases overland done Oman.

Omani backstage banking institutions and businesses are besides reportedly known to beryllium "servicing nan Houthi system and moreover supplying nan group pinch arms." 

"More must beryllium done to forestall bulk rate smuggling crossed nan separator betwixt Oman and Yemen," Heistein found. "Muscat must statesman to consciousness unit from nan world organization to reside a threat finance situation that has gone unchecked for excessively long."

The study breaks down nan varied steps that request to beryllium taken to efficaciously undermine and antagonistic nan Houthis arsenic repeated subject strikes by first, Saudi Arabia starting successful 2015, past precocious by nan U.S. and Israel, person not importantly degraded nan violent group.

Houthi fighters locomotion complete British and U.S flags astatine a rally successful support of Palestinians successful nan Gaza Strip, and nan caller Houthi strikes connected shipping successful nan Red Sea and Gulf of Aden connected Feb. 4, 2024, connected nan outskirts of Sana'a, Yemen. (Mohammed Hamoud/Getty Images)

Those steps see continued subject action – akin to Israel’s caller strikes connected Yemen’s Hodeidah larboard and Sana’a International Airport, which are expected to person far-reaching economical impacts and summation soul unit connected nan Houthis. But subject action unsocial isn’t enough; economic, diplomatic, and different soft powerfulness strategies are besides needed to weaken nan group, according to nan report. 

The study besides highlighted that nan Houthis person utilized erstwhile lulls successful fighting pinch nations for illustration Saudi Arabia, nan U.S. and Israel to regroup and rebuild. 

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"Compelling nan Houthis to halt attacks connected shipping is simply a meaningful accomplishment only if it is portion of a broader, semipermanent strategy," Heistein told Fox News Digital. "However, if a Red Sea ceasefire becomes nan centerpiece and endpoint of U.S. argumentation toward nan Houthis, it risks empowering an progressively vulnerable authorities to escalate and de-escalate astatine will.

 "Without a broad attack to addressing nan Houthi threat, nan U.S. and its friends could soon beryllium confronting a much dangerous, better-armed violent group," Heinstein warned.