Pentagon Finds Major Civilian Toll in Yemen Strikes

A Pentagon review submitted to Congress found that three US airstrikes against Houthi forces in Yemen in April 2025 killed 153 civilians and injured 243 others. The strikes occurred during a US military campaign against the Iranian-backed Houthis, who had been attacking commercial shipping and US warships in the Red Sea while claiming to support Palestinians during Israel’s war against Hamas. The attacks targeted Houthi positions in or near Sanaa, Yemen’s rebel-held capital, and the Ras Isa port. The port strike was the deadliest, killing 80 people and injuring 171. The Pentagon concluded that the strikes “more likely than not” caused civilian harm, based on intelligence, imagery and open-source information. However, the review said condolence payments to victims were not appropriate and did not explain the decision. Such payments are discretionary and do not constitute an admission of wrongdoing. The findings come amid growing concern about civilian casualties in military operations under the Trump administration. The article notes reports that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has reduced the size of an office dedicated to limiting civilian harm, as well as a separate US missile strike on an Iranian primary school that reportedly killed up to 168 people. The United States began attacking the Houthis in 2023 under President Joe Biden after the group launched drones and missiles at commercial vessels in the Red Sea. The US-led campaign developed into a major naval confrontation, involving American fighter jets and destroyers intercepting Houthi weapons. Renewed Houthi attacks on Yemeni government forces, Saudi oil facilities and shipping have raised fears that Yemen’s civil war could resume after a 2022 truce and that the violence could widen the regional conflict.

The article examines how escalating attacks by Iran-backed Houthi forces on Red Sea shipping could prompt the United States to reconsider its military posture in the Horn of Africa. The Houthis have threatened to close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a strategically important waterway connecting the Indian Ocean with the Mediterranean through the Suez Canal and a major route for Saudi oil exports. The article reports that Houthi attacks have recently targeted Saudi-flagged vessels, allegedly sunk an Indian cargo ship, and struck an Egyptian ship, killing at least four crew members. Analysts argue that the attacks may increase the value of Somaliland as a U.S. security partner. Somaliland, which declared independence from Somalia in 1991 but lacks broad international recognition, is described as offering an air base, one of Africa’s longest runways, and a deep-sea port. Former British ambassador Edmund Fitton-Brown says Djibouti, where the United States already maintains a major base, is becoming less reliable as China expands its military and commercial presence there. Retired Major General Ken Ekman suggests that the Houthi threat could eventually push Washington toward recognizing Somaliland as an independent state. The article presents the attacks as a second front that could distract U.S. forces and stretch military resources while Iran’s influence over the Strait of Hormuz changes. Ekman says AFRICOM has traditionally focused on counterterrorism against al Qaeda- and ISIS-linked groups, while Red Sea basing has primarily supported crisis response and competition with Russia and China. A strategy centered on the Houthis would instead prioritize freedom of navigation and could make Somaliland more attractive than existing regional partners. The supplied article ends abruptly during a discussion of AFRICOM Commander Gen. Dagvin Anderson’s views on U.S. relations with Somalia.

A Pentagon review found that three US airstrikes against Iran-backed Houthi targets in Yemen in April 2025 probably caused significant civilian harm, killing 153 people and injuring 243 others. The assessment was submitted to Congress as part of the Pentagon’s annual civilian casualty report and concluded that the attacks “more likely than not” resulted in civilian casualties. It relied on US intelligence, satellite and other imagery, and open-source reporting. The review examined strikes on Houthi-controlled positions in and around Sanaa, Yemen’s rebel-held capital, and at Ras Isa port. The Ras Isa attack was the deadliest, killing 80 people and injuring 171. The strike caused fires and explosions at the port, with tanker trucks burning, while footage broadcast by the Houthi-run al-Masirah channel showed bodies at the scene. US Central Command said the operation was intended to destroy a source of fuel and revenue for the Houthis, not harm civilians. The Pentagon nevertheless determined that condolence payments were not appropriate in these cases, without explaining the decision. Such payments are discretionary, are not legally required, and do not constitute an admission of wrongdoing. The findings come amid increased scrutiny of civilian casualties during US military operations under the Trump administration. The article also links the issue to a reported US missile strike on an Iranian primary school that may have killed up to 168 people and to reports that Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth reduced the size of a Pentagon office focused on limiting civilian harm. The United States began attacking the Houthis in 2023 after the group targeted commercial shipping in the Red Sea, saying it was acting in support of Palestinians during Israel’s war with Hamas.