More than 10 years into the political and humanitarian crisis in Yemen, Yemeni Information Minister Moammar al-Eryani has emphatic praise for US President Donald Trump’s foreign policy, including recent US strikes on Yemen’s Houthi terrorists.
“The military operations carried out by the United States against the terrorist Houthi militia are a necessary strategic step at a pivotal moment in the region’s history,” al-Eryani told The Media Line in an exclusive interview.
“These operations did not come as a fleeting reaction, but rather represent a decisive move to deter one of the most serious threats to the security and stability of the region and the world.”
The Iran-backed Houthis have been clashing with Yemen’s internationally recognized government since 2014. Al-Eryani described the Houthi movement as “an advanced military arm of Iran in the southern Arabian Peninsula” that has become a growing threat to both regional security and international navigation. “Ignoring this threat is like allowing a cancer to spread to its final stages,” he said.
Al-Eryani said that recent US strikes had weakened the Houthis’ military capacity and curbed Iranian influence in the Red Sea and the Bab-el-Mandeb strait, which connects to the Indian Ocean.
● We condemn and denounce in the strongest terms the targeting of the terrorist Houthi militia affiliated with Iran, to populated civilian areas in the hijacked capital #Sanaa and its surroundings, and a number of cities under its control, and then trying to blame those crimes… pic.twitter.com/dCtVZv6i5k
— معمر الإرياني (@ERYANIM) April 21, 2025
The strikes helped to restore regional balance and allowed moderate states in the region more ability to protect themselves, he added.
“We see this US move as serving the interests of collective security and paving the way for restoring the Yemeni state and building a more stable future in Yemen, the region, and the world,” al-Eryani said.
Contrasting President Trump’s policy with past inaction
Since October 2023, the Houthis have attacked foreign ships in the Red Sea in what they describe as a policy of solidarity with the Palestinian people. The attacks have led to an ongoing shipping crisis, and President Trump has vowed to continue attacks on the Houthis as long as they interfere with freedom of navigation.
Al-Eryani said that President Trump’s policy of confronting the Houthis stood in contrast to a history of international inaction on Iranian expansionism, including from the previous US administration. That global indifference “enabled Tehran to boast of its control over four Arab capitals, in clear violation of international law,” al-Eryani said, referring to Iranian influence in Yemen, Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon.
With President Trump back in power, the balance has shifted, he explained. “The new administration has instituted a strong and clear policy to deter this expansion and has reiterated its commitment to ensuring international security,” he said.
“Make America Great Again is not just an election slogan; it was embodied in practical positions that restore America’s role as a leader in the free world by protecting strategic waterways and supporting its allies in confronting terrorism and sabotage,” al-Eryani continued.
Houthis threaten global trade and regional stability
He characterized the US’s recent decision to ramp up attacks on the Houthis as resulting from “a long accumulation of violations and threats that have become a real threat to the security of the region and the world.”
“The Houthi militia has transformed into a sophisticated military entity, possessing advanced missile and drone technology,” he said. “It has launched systematic attacks on commercial vessels and oil tankers in the Red Sea, threatening one of the world’s most important maritime passages, through which approximately 20% of global trade passes.”
The Houthis’ continued presence in Yemen “not only threatens Yemen but also undermines the chances of stability in the region and grants Iran a foothold in the Arabian Peninsula,” he said. “Therefore, confronting the Houthis is an international responsibility that cannot tolerate further neglect or narrow calculations.”
The Trump administration recognized the need to respond given the “escalating landscape of chaos and threats” that began to directly affect US interests, al-Eryani said. “The administration has realized that turning a blind eye is no longer an option, and that any delay in deterring the Houthis will only exacerbate the threat and potentially plunge the region into a broader and more complex cycle of violence,” he added.
He said that the US strikes on the Houthis represent a “strategic shift” toward actively protecting freedom of navigation and the interests of regional allies. “This move was widely welcomed as a long-awaited step to reset the equation and curb the destructive plots that have long been fueled by international silence,” he said.
“Today, Yemenis and the free peoples of the world look forward to these operations as the beginning of a new approach based on a resolute confrontation against Iran’s proxies in the region, and on supporting the process of restoring the state, ending the coup, and achieving the desired stability, not only for Yemen, but for the region and the world,” al-Eryani continued.
Censorship and rising frustration in Houthi-controlled areas
As US airstrikes continue to target Houthi sites, the Houthis have imposed a ban on publicizing the names of areas targeted by the US. Citizens have been instructed to say “I don’t know” when asked any questions about the strikes.
“The Houthi militia’s ban on sharing the names of the targeted sites reflects, first, the extent of the losses it has incurred as a result of the precision strikes carried out by US forces, and, second, the extent of the rift within the militia’s media and security infrastructure,” al-Eryani said. “The issue goes beyond mere military confidentiality; it is becoming a desperate attempt to control public opinion and contain the mounting popular anger in the areas under their control.”
Following the gag order, Yemeni journalists and activists launched a campaign under the title “The People Know” and published cartoons mocking the Houthi policy. Al-Eryani said that those developments reveal a shift in public awareness and growing frustration with the Houthis and their attempts at disinformation.
“What is happening today is not just a passing case of discontent, but rather real indicators of growing popular awareness and a widening gap between the militia and the local community,” al-Eryani said. “We in the government are in constant contact with our citizens in the areas under Houthi control, and we are closely monitoring the rapid shifts in public sentiment. We can confidently say that there is a growing sense of hope among Yemenis that the end of the militia is only a matter of time, and that the chapters of change have already begun.”
He compared the changing sentiments in Yemen to similar changes that have taken place throughout the region, such as the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria and growing rejection of Hezbollah in Lebanon. “The Houthis are at their weakest today, and what they fear most is not just airstrikes, but also public awareness and breaking the barrier of fear,” he said.
Missile threats to Israel and the broader Iranian agenda
The Houthis have recently announced the launch of several missiles at Israel, claiming to have targeted Israel’s Ben-Gurion Airport. Al-Eryani said that Houthi claims of attacks on Israel are “nothing more than propaganda aimed at the media, not the battlefield.”
“They have not changed the course of events and do not represent a real military threat to Israel. Rather, they are being used internally to reinforce the ‘resistance’ narrative, which is completely at odds with the reality of the militia, which is killing Yemenis, targeting its neighbors, and serving Iran’s expansionist agendas,” he said. “Therefore, the real stakes lie in a comprehensive and coordinated international effort to curb this militia, which has become a complex threat: political, security, and economic.”
Economic sanctions as a tool against Houthi financing
In addition to conducting airstrikes, the US has also begun imposing sanctions on a number of banks under Houthi control. Al-Eryani said that those measures “represent a direct and significant blow to the illicit financing system the Houthi militia relies on to finance its military and subversive activities.”
“The militia does not hesitate to exploit state institutions and banks under its control to collect and launder funds, direct them toward the purchase of weapons, financing attacks on commercial vessels and oil tankers, and expanding its terrorist activities, rather than directing them toward essential services needed by citizens,” al-Eryani said. “The US action is a clear message that the world will no longer turn a blind eye to a reality in which a designated terrorist militia dominates financial and banking institutions, using them as a tool for domestic and international extortion and financing terrorism.”
He said that the internationally recognized government has called for banks operating in areas controlled by the Houthis to relocate to the interim capital of Aden in order to ensure the stability of the banking system while breaking free “from the cycle of Houthi exploitation.”
“We have also called on businessmen, importers, and traders to halt any financial or commercial transactions, direct or indirect, with the militia, as any partnership or support for this group constitutes an accomplice in terrorism and exposes them to international sanctions and legal accountability,” al-Eryani said. “We emphasize that confronting the militia is not limited to military fronts alone, but also includes dismantling its economic system, which it uses to undermine stability. These sanctions represent an important step in this direction.”
Military vision and the role of international partners
Recent reports have suggested that the internationally recognized Yemeni government is preparing to seize areas currently controlled by the Houthis, including the Red Sea port of Hodeidah.
“Government forces have remained highly prepared to deal with any Houthi escalation or any collapse of the deescalation process. Military preparedness is not new; rather, it is part of a clear strategic vision based on reclaiming all Yemeni territory, including the capital, Sanaa, the port of Hodeidah, and every inch of Yemen,” al-Eryani said when asked about these reports.
He emphasized that the conflict between Yemen’s internationally recognized government and the Houthis long predates the recent Red Sea crisis. “It is an existential battle for the Yemeni people, linked to restoring the state, ending the coup, and building a just and sustainable peace,” he said.
“The Houthis, since taking control of the capital, Sanaa, the port of Hodeidah, and other areas, have never acted within the framework of state norms and logic, nor have they demonstrated any genuine commitment to peace efforts,” he continued. “Instead, they have exploited every truce and every political initiative to bolster their military capabilities, consolidate their oppressive control, smuggle Iranian weapons, and recruit thousands of children and youth into their ranks, not to mention transforming ports into platforms that threaten international navigation.”
Since the Houthi military coup in 2014, the Yemeni capital of Sanaa has been controlled by the rebel group. Al-Eryani said that the Houthis “hijacked” the capital, subjecting it to “the rule of a militia that is intellectually and ideologically closed, run from outside the country’s borders, and serving an expansionist Iranian agenda in the region.”
He said that Sanaa was not just the administrative capital of Yemen but “the symbol of the state and the center of its sovereignty.”
“With the escalation of security threats to international navigation and growing world awareness of the dangers of the Houthi scheme, the opportunity to advance the issue of recapturing Sanaa as a strategic priority grows, not only for Yemenis but for the security of the region and the world,” al-Eryani said. “The Yemeni people will not remain hostage to this militia indefinitely, and the right moment will come to complete the liberation of the capital, turn the page on the coup, and restore national sovereignty.”
Al-Eryani said that Yemen’s internationally recognized government tried to achieve a just peace through numerous international efforts and processes. “Experience has shown that the Houthi militia views these efforts only as an opportunity to reposition and rearm,” he said.
“Today, with the escalation of Houthi terrorism against commercial vessels, and the transformation of the ports they control, namely, Hodeidah, into logistical centers for launching attacks, with the booby-trapped boats and drones, it has become impossible to ignore the process of restoring the state and ending the militia’s extortion against the Yemenis and the international community,” he said.
The Houthis have also used the humanitarian crisis in Yemen as a way of increasing their influence, he added.
He said that Yemen would welcome “all forms of regional and international support” in its efforts to strengthen the state and end what he called the “Iranian-backed Houthi coup.” Supporting Yemen is a contribution to international peace and security, he said, noting that the Red Sea crisis has proved that the threat posed by the Houthis extends far beyond the region.
Many international powers have recently displayed greater willingness to support Yemen, “especially after the world realized that the Yemenis are waging a war on behalf of the world against a transnational terrorist scheme that derives its power from Tehran,” he said.
An Arab coalition led by Saudi Arabia has been the main supporter of Yemen in recent years, he explained. Through their support, the government managed to liberate approximately 80% of Yemeni territory and nearly 90% of the coastal strip extending along the Arabian Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the Bab el-Mandeb strait, and the Red Sea, al-Eryani said.
Between 2014 and 2020, the Saudi-led coalition “thwarted hundreds of maritime terrorist operations carried out by the Houthi militia, including the destruction of more than 100 explosive-laden boats, the dismantling of more than 240 naval mines, and the destruction of factories used by the militia, with the help of experts from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Lebanese Hezbollah, to manufacture drones and naval mines,” he said.
“Saudi support was not only military; it also encompassed humanitarian, economic, and developmental support, contributing to alleviating the suffering of millions of Yemenis,” he added.
But due to international pressure, al-Eryani said, the coalition was unable to complete its mission of liberating Sanaa and Hodeidah and winning back Yemen.
“If the coalition and the legitimate government had been allowed to complete their mission, the situation would be different today,” he explained. “Yemen’s coasts would be safer, and Tehran’s project in the Arabian Peninsula would have been contained.”
He described Saudi Arabia as a strategic partner of Yemen “in word and deed.”
“Yemen’s security is integral to its security, and its stability is essential to the stability of the entire region,” he said.