Oman says it brokers truce between Washington and Houthis, says neither side will target the other.
President Donald Trump has announced the United States is abandoning its daily bombing campaign of Yemen based on an understanding with the Houthis as Oman confirms that it has brokered a ceasefire between Washington and the armed group.
“The Houthis have announced to us that they don’t want to fight any more. They just don’t want to fight, and we will honour that, and we will stop the bombings,” Trump told reporters in the White House on Tuesday during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
Trump claimed that the Iran-aligned Yemeni group “capitulated” and has promised not to carry out attacks on shipping. It launched those attacks in October 2023 shortly after the war in Gaza started, saying the attacks were in support of Palestinians.
“I will accept their word, and we will be stopping the bombing of Houthis, effective immediately,” the US president said.
Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi said the two sides have agreed to a ceasefire.
“Following recent discussions and contacts conducted by the Sultanate of Oman with the United States and the relevant authorities in Sana’a, in the Republic of Yemen, with the aim of de-escalation, efforts have resulted in a ceasefire agreement between the two sides,” he wrote in a post on X.
“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.”
Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, a member of the Houthis’ Supreme Political Council, wrote in a post on X that “Trump’s announcement of a halt to America’s aggression against Yemen will be evaluated on the ground first.”
“Yemen operations were and still are a support for Gaza to stop the aggression and bring in aid,” he added, suggesting that the group would not halt its attacks on Israel.
Reporting from Washington, DC, Al Jazeera’s Mike Hanna said that the US State Department clarified that the agreement did not relate to the conflict between Israel and the Houthis.
“It was made very clear by the US State Department that the deal relates directly to Houthi operations in the coast of Yemen, specifically in regard to US shipping,” he said.
The ceasefire announcement comes hours after the Israeli military launched air strikes on the airport in Sanaa, inflicting devastating damage and rendering it inoperable.
Dozens of Israeli warplanes also launched several waves of large-scale overnight strikes on Yemen’s vital port of Hodeidah in what Israel said was a response after the Houthis hit the perimeter of Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport with a ballistic missile.
The US military has been launching daily air strikes across Yemen for nearly two months, destroying infrastructure and killing dozens of people, including children and civilians.
Al Jazeera’s Ali Hashem said it was “possible” that Iran helped to convince the Houthis to de-escalate their attacks.
“The Omanis have also been the main mediators between the US and Iran, and now the Houthis and the Americans. There are indications that the nuclear talks are advancing, with a framework shaping over sanctions lifting in exchange for nuclear restrictions,” he said.
“It is possible that the Iranians have helped in convincing the Houthis to de-escalate, especially if we see this reflected on the Iranian-American talks. It could have been an incentive for the nuclear talks to be done quicker.”
