Trump quits fight as Houthis double down on Israel

President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the United States would stop its strikes on the Houthi terrorists in Yemen “effective immediately,” even as the Yemini terror group has stepped up its attacks on Israel.

A Houthi missile struck near Ben Gurion Airport’s central terminal on Sunday, a first. Eight people were wounded after both the Israeli Arrow and US THAAD missile defense systems failed to intercept it.

Trump said the Iran-backed group “agreed to stop interrupting important shipping lanes in the Middle East,” suggesting it would leave the US alone while continuing to pound the Jewish state.

A few hours before Trump spoke, a Houthis statement said they were confronting an “Israeli-American-British” enemy in a “holy war in aid of the wronged Palestinian people in Gaza.”

Israel was not informed in advance about President Trump’s announcement regarding the Houthis, an informed source told The Jerusalem Post. Pentagon officials told the New York Times they were also not informed in advance and were scrambling to discern the policy implications of Mr. Trump’s announcement.

“They just don’t want to fight. And we will honor that and we will stop the bombings,” Trump told reporters ahead of a meeting with nearly-elected Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. “They have capitulated, but more importantly, we will take their word. They say they will not be blowing up ships anymore.”

Oman’s foreign minister, Badr Albusaidi, said in a statement on social media that Oman had mediated the agreement between the Houthis and the United States.

“In the future, neither side will target the other, including American vessels, in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait, ensuring freedom of navigation and the smooth flow of international commercial shipping,” he said.

Following Trump’s surprise announcement, a senior Houthi figure, Mohammed Al-Bukhaiti, said that if the US stopped its attacks on Yemen, the Houthis would halt their attacks on “American military fleets and interests” — while continuing military operations “in support of Gaza.”

“Our military operations in support of Gaza will not stop unless the aggression on Gaza ends,” Al-Bukhaiti said.

The Houthi’s anti-Israel determination would continue until the Jewish states ends its siege on Gaza, “no matter the sacrifices, even if we have to fight until Judgment Day,” he said.

The Trump administration previously reported that the US had struck hundreds of targets in Yemin in a bid to reopen international shipping lanes in the Red Sea,

“They said please don’t bomb us anymore, and we’re not going to attack your ships,” the president continued. “I will accept their word, and we are going to stop the bombing of the Houthis effective immediately.”

Trump also said a “very, very big” and “positive” announcement is coming before he departs for his trip to the Middle East, according to the press pool. He did not specify the announcement or subject.

On Monday, Israel conducted a wave of strikes on Yemen’s Hudaydah Port in retaliation against the Houthis’ strike near Ben Gurion.

Report from JNS and other sources.