Trump says Iran ‘will be held responsible’ for Huthi attacks

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump on Monday declared he will hold Iran directly responsible for any future attacks by Yemen´s Tehran-backed Huthi rebels, who have targeted multiple US and other foreign ships in the Red Sea.

“Every shot fired by the Houthis will be looked upon, from this point forward, as being a shot fired from the weapons and leadership of IRAN, and IRAN will be held responsible, and suffer the consequences,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.

While the United States has been carrying out strikes on Huthi targets for months, Trump´s comments were unusually pointed at Iran, whom he is also pressuring over nuclear talks. He spoke after the first US strikes on Yemen of his new term killed 53 people and wounded 98 on Saturday.

In response the Huthis claimed two strikes on a US aircraft carrier and rallied thousands at protests in parts of Yemen under their control. The United States struck the Huthis over their repeated attacks on Red Sea shipping vessels, which have put a major strain on the vital trade route.

The Huthis have said they are carrying out the attacks in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, where Israel is waging a war with US support.

“Any further attack or retaliation by the ´Houthis´ will be met with great force,” Trump also said in his post, adding that “Iran has played ´the innocent victim´” in the conflict. Before this weekend´s targeting of the US carrier group, the Huthis had not claimed attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since January 19, when a ceasefire in Gaza began.

Trump, who ran for a second White House term in part based avoiding further involvement in Middle East conflict, has also called for a new nuclear deal with Iran while reinstating his “maximum pressure” policy of sanctions.