A White House spokeswoman said in a statement to The New York Times that “President Trump successfully delivered a cease-fire, which is another good deal for America and our security.”
According to the The New York Times the developments indicated that some in the US national security team underestimated the tenacity of the Houthis and overestimated Trump’s willingness to engage in a military conflict in the Middle East. It noted that during his first term, Trump had worked to bring US troops home from Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq.
In addition, General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as well as his predecessors, had worried that fighting the Houthis would draw resources from the Asia-Pacific region. Trump’s sudden halt to the campaign had surprised Israel, which was still carrying out its own strikes against the Houthis.
The Houthis — whose slogan calls for “Death to America, Death to Israel, [and] a Curse on the Jews” — first began attacking Israel and maritime traffic in November 2023, a month after the October 7 Hamas massacre.
The Houthis held their fire when a ceasefire was reached between Israel and Hamas in January 2025. By that point, they had fired over 40 ballistic missiles and dozens of attack drones and cruise missiles at Israel, including one that killed a civilian and wounded several others in Tel Aviv in July, prompting Israel’s first strike in Yemen.
Since March 18, when the IDF resumed its offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis have launched some 29 ballistic missiles and at least 10 drones at Israel. The sirens warning of missile attacks have sent hundreds of thousands of Israelis rushing to shelters at all hours of the day and night.
On May 4 two days before Trump announced his truce with the Yemeni terror group, a Houthi ballistic missile beat Israel’s defenses and impacted inside the grounds of Ben Gurion Airport, causing damage and minor injuries, and prompting most foreign airlines to institute an ongoing suspension of Israel flights.
