Iran-Backed Huthis to Target US Cargo Ships After Strikes on Yemen
A plume of smoke billows during a US strike on Yemen's Huthi-held capital Sanaa early on March 16, 2025. ©Mohammed HUWAIS / AFP

Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels on Sunday vowed to target American cargo ships in the Red Sea after deadly US attacks struck the country.

In a televised address, Huthi leader Abdulmalik al-Huthi also called for a "million-strong" rally of defiance across rebel-held areas on Monday.

The first US strikes on Yemen under President Donald Trump killed 31 people and wounded more than 100, according to Huthi officials.

They followed Huthi threats to renew attacks on Israeli shipping in the Red Sea following a pause since January, when the Gaza war ceasefire began.

"America will now be subject to the embargo as long as it continues its aggression," Huthi said.

"We will confront escalation with escalation, and we will respond to the American enemy by targeting its aircraft carrier and warships and banning its ships," he added.

"If the American aggression against our country continues, we will move to additional escalatory options."

Huthi attacks on cargo vessels during the Gaza war have disrupted the vital Red Sea route, which normally carries about 12 percent of world shipping traffic.

Huthi urged major rallies on Monday, the anniversary of a celebrated military victory by the Prophet Mohammed in the seventh century.

"I call on our dear people to go out tomorrow on the anniversary of the Battle of Badr in a million-strong march in Sanaa and the rest of the governorates," he said.

The death toll from the first US strikes on Yemen under President Donald Trump has risen to 53, including five children, the Iran-backed Huthi rebels' health ministry said Sunday.

In what it said was the definitive toll from Saturday's strikes, ministry spokesperson Anis Al-Asbahi posted on X that 53 people had been killed, including "five children and two women" and that 98 people had been wounded.

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