Speaking at the White House on Tuesday alongside Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Trump stated that the Houthis “just don’t want to fight, and we will honour that and we will stop the bombings, and they have capitulated.”
Trump added that the Houthis had said, “please don’t bomb us any more and we’re not going to attack your ships.”
Oman, which acted as mediator, confirmed the agreement, stating that neither the United States nor the Houthis would target one another, “ensuring freedom of navigation and the smooth flow of international commercial shipping,” according to the Omani foreign minister.
Since late 2023, the Iran-aligned Houthis have launched repeated attacks on vessels transiting the Red Sea, claiming to target ships linked to Israel in response to the war in Gaza. In turn, the United States and its allies have conducted strikes on Houthi positions in Yemen, drawing criticism from human rights groups over the humanitarian consequences.
Despite the announcement, reports suggest that hostilities have not ceased. Container shipping expert Lars Jensen reported on LinkedIn on Wednesday that Houthi media outlets released a statement claiming an attack on the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Truman and its support vessels, including the downing of an F/A-18 fighter jet. The veracity of these claims remains unverified, but Jensen noted that they were issued after the U.S. ceasefire declaration.
Furthermore, Yemen’s chief negotiator, Mohammed Abdulsalam, dismissed the U.S. statements as “baseless.” As cited in Houthi-aligned media and shared by Jensen on LinkedIn, Abdulsalam described the announcement as a reflection of “Washington’s frustration after failing to protect Israeli ships and contain the fallout of its involvement.”
Jensen also referenced a CNN report citing four anonymous sources who claimed the Houthis had “taken a shot” at the USS Truman the day prior.
“The situation is, at best, unclear,” Jensen wrote. “Whether there is a ceasefire or not in relation to targeting shipping in the Red Sea can, at best, be said to be unclear. It is, however, quite clear that even if there is a deal this does not encompass Houthi attacks directly at Israel.”
He also pointed out that the Houthis had previously suspended Red Sea attacks during a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas earlier in 2025, only to resume action when hostilities in Gaza restarted.
With conflicting statements and a continued threat to vessels, a swift return to the Red Sea corridor appears unlikely. As maritime analyst Lars Jensen noted, “there is not a high probability that large merchant vessels will be in a rush to go back through the Red Sea.”
