The Pentagon has told Congress that US air strikes in Yemen in 2025 killed 153 civilians and wounded 243. The 12-page review, sent to the Senate Armed Services Committee, said several strikes “more likely than not” caused civilian deaths and injuries.
The strikes were ordered by President Donald Trump in March 2025 after Yemen’s Houthi group attacked ships in the Red Sea, saying it was acting in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. The review detailed specific attacks, including a 6 April strike on Sanaa that killed five civilians and wounded 25, a 17 April strike on Hodeidah that killed at least 80 civilians, and a strike in late April that killed at least 68 African migrants in the northwestern province of Saada. The Pentagon said 15 incidents remain under review.
Human Rights Watch has called for the Hodeidah attack to be investigated as a war crime, saying the US decision to strike Ras Issa Port, a key aid entry point, while hundreds of workers were present showed a “callous disregard” for civilian lives.
The Houthis endured more than 1,000 US strikes during the campaign. The campaign was called off in May 2025 before Trump visited the Gulf, after Saudi Arabia pressed the US to end it. The Houthis have since resumed attacks on Red Sea shipping and expanded them to target Saudi Arabia’s energy infrastructure.
The decision to launch the strikes was initially overshadowed by the SignalGate leaks, when a journalist was accidentally added to a Signal chat where senior US officials discussed the campaign.