Trump reportedly holds off Houthi strikes as Yemen displacement passes 125,000
President Trump has reportedly held off ordering strikes on Yemen's Houthis, who now control more of the Bab al-Mandab Strait, as UN says fighting has displaced over 125,000 people.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
President Trump has reportedly held off ordering military strikes against the Houthis in Yemen after considering action in support of Saudi Arabia. Some US reporting says he pulled back from ordering strikes over the weekend. Washington has said the two sides remain in contact and that the Houthis are not planning to target US interests around the Bab al-Mandab Strait, which the group now controls more fully.
The Houthis have made rapid gains along Yemen's Red Sea coast. Over the last week they captured two strategic islands, consolidating control of the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a key international shipping route. Yemen's internationally recognised government withdrew quickly and has opened an inquiry into its commander, Tariq Al Saleh, the nephew of former president Ali Abdullah Saleh. The Houthis want to control the whole of Yemen and want the Saudi-led blockade on their ports and airport lifted.
The fighting has caused a sharp humanitarian toll. The UN says more than 125,000 people have been displaced inside Yemen in recent weeks. About 3,000 Yemeni refugees have crossed the Bab al-Mandab to Djibouti in the last few days, and the UN refugee agency expects up to another 7,000. At a camp in Djibouti run by the government and the UNHCR, families described fleeing airstrikes. Many arrived with only the clothes they were wearing; some fishermen brought goats and a few belongings. They said they were not taking sides and were most afraid of the bombing.
Saudi Arabia has responded with airstrikes against Houthi positions. The Houthis have fired missiles and drones at Saudi targets, including Riyadh over the weekend, according to reports. The two sides are trading air strikes, missile strikes and drone attacks. The conflict is also choking Saudi oil exports and threatening shipping through the Red Sea.
The US is under pressure from Saudi Arabia. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has called President Trump at least twice seeking help, and Saudi officials feel betrayed by the lack of direct military support. But Washington has been reluctant. Officials and analysts point to the US ceasefire with the Houthis last year, the risk of making US forces a target, and the wider US military burden in the region, including the conflict with Iran. Trump is also reported to have spoken by phone to Yemen's president over the weekend. Egypt has offered political support and Turkey may consider military support later.
The oil market is watching the Bab al-Mandab. Saudi Arabia had diverted some crude to the Red Sea to avoid the Strait of Hormuz, but flows through Bab al-Mandab have dropped as tensions rose. Saudi loadings have shifted back to the Persian Gulf. Northern Red Sea traffic has been relatively unaffected, but insurance costs and risks have risen across the region. The US is less dependent on the route than Europe and the Mediterranean, though US naval forces are escorting some tankers through the Strait of Hormuz. France and Britain have deployed naval assets, including the French carrier Charles de Gaulle at one point, and European allies may face pressure to do more at the UN General Assembly.
The situation remains volatile. The US has not agreed to concrete military action, and the Houthis continue to press their advantage. Aid agencies are preparing for more refugees, while shipping and oil markets adjust to the risk of a wider conflict around one of the world's most important maritime chokepoints.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, mapped by channel. Ordered by how many channels carried each claim.
| Claim | BBC News | BBC One |
|---|---|---|
| A camp in Djibouti run with the UN refugee agency received more than 3,000 Yemeni refugees in recent days. | ||
| The Houthis captured two strategic Red Sea islands and consolidated control of the Bab al-Mandab Strait. | ||
| The UN reported that recent fighting between Houthi and government forces displaced more than 125,000 people in Yemen in a few weeks. | ||
| Oil flows through the Bab al-Mandab Strait dropped notably as Red Sea tensions rose, with increased Saudi loadings in the Persian Gulf and higher insurance and transit risks. | · | |
| The US reached a ceasefire agreement with the Houthis last year. | · | |
| US President Trump reportedly considered military action against the Houthis in Yemen in support of Saudi Arabia and did not order strikes over the weekend. | · |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
BBC News Now led with the White House decision and the humanitarian fallout, using a live two-way from Djibouti. It stressed that Trump had weighed action but reportedly pulled back, and it gave detailed space to Houthi aims, Saudi frustration and the US and Chinese military presence in Djibouti. The tone was urgent but explanatory, with refugees' fear of airstrikes as the emotional centre.
- “President Trump is apparently weighing up military action on the Houthis in Yemen in support of Saudi Arabia.”
- “The UN says the recent fighting between the Houthis and government forces has displaced more than 125,000 people in Yemen within the last few weeks.”
- “The Saudis are feeling betrayed.”
Verified Live focused on how the Houthis made their gains and on the diplomatic dilemma for Washington. It used a former UK ambassador to Yemen and Iran to explain the rapid collapse of government forces, alleged Saudi-Houthi escalation and the risk to the US-Houthi ceasefire. It also carried refugee reporting, but its main weight was strategic and regional.
- “Certainly, they've driven down the Red Sea coast with their forces and taken effective control of the key outposts on that narrow strait, the Bab al-Mandab, the Gate of Tears, as it's called in translation.”
- “I think one can assume that there is a close coordination going on between Sana'a and Tehran on this.”
- “breaking that ceasefire by coming in militarily in support of the Saudis and making the United States a target will be one big factor in his mind.”
The Context treated the story mainly through oil markets, shipping and US credibility with Gulf allies. Its panel asked how much damage the fighting has done to Red Sea energy flows and whether Washington can ignore Saudi requests for help. It gave less attention to the refugee camp than the other two broadcasts, though it repeated the UN displacement figure in its introduction.
- “We had a deal with the Houthis. Don't bother us. We won't bother you.”
- “The United States has already had an experience of bombing Yemen, trying to bring the Houthis in line with what we desire, which is freedom of navigation, and paying a substantial monetary cost, even losing some lives during that effort, an effort that did not pay dividends for the United States.”
- “It's pretty much everything that goes through that way to Europe.”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.