Houthis Tell Trump Administration They Seek No Direct Clash With U.S.
If confirmed, direct Houthi outreach signals a potential channel for de-escalation even as ground combat continues along Yemen's Red Sea coast.
U.S. President Donald Trump stated on September 12, 2026, that Houthi representatives contacted the U.S. Government to request that Washington refrain from intervening directly in the group's ongoing conflict with Saudi Arabia. Trump made the remarks to journalists in Dublin, Ireland, according to Folha de S.Paulo.
"The Houthis called us and do not want to fight us," Trump told reporters, according to Folha de S.Paulo. "They do not want us to attack them," he added. The White House has not, as of publication, released a formal statement, a transcript, or other documentation confirming the substance or channel of the alleged contact. What would clarify the claim is an official readout naming the date, intermediary, and format of the communication.
On the same day, Yemeni government forces reported conducting air strikes against Houthi fighters in and around Mocha, a port city on the Red Sea coast, targeting what they described as Houthi "members and vehicles," according to Al Jazeera. The government forces did not provide casualty figures or independent verification of the strike outcomes in the statement cited by Al Jazeera.
Mocha sits on the eastern shore of the Red Sea near the Bab el-Mandeb strait, a waterway through which a significant portion of global shipping transits. Houthi operations in and near that strait have previously disrupted commercial maritime traffic, prompting international naval responses over the past two years.
The Houthi movement, formally known as Ansar Allah, is aligned with Iran and controls a large portion of northwestern Yemen including the capital Sanaa. The group has been in armed conflict with a Saudi-led coalition and internationally recognized Yemeni government forces since 2015, according to United Nations documentation of the conflict.
U.S. Military involvement in Yemen has fluctuated over successive administrations. The Biden administration suspended offensive support for Saudi-led coalition operations in 2021, then later authorized targeted strikes against Houthi missile and drone infrastructure following attacks on Red Sea shipping in 2024, according to U.S. Department of Defense public records. The Trump administration, upon returning to office in January 2025, conducted additional strikes against Houthi positions, according to U.S. Central Command statements.
Trump's assertion that the Houthis reached out to avoid a confrontation represents a notable shift in framing if accurate. Previously, Houthi leadership publicly stated willingness to continue operations against what they described as Israeli and American targets in the region. Senior Houthi official Mohammed Ali al-Houthi posted statements on social media in 2024 and 2025 asserting the group's readiness for extended conflict, according to Reuters reporting at that time.
The timing of Trump's remarks in Dublin coincides with continued ground fighting in western Yemen. The Yemeni government's reported strikes on Mocha indicate that kinetic operations between the two Yemeni factions are ongoing regardless of any diplomatic signaling at the international level.
Saudi Arabia has pursued intermittent negotiations with the Houthis in recent years. A China-brokered diplomatic normalization between Saudi Arabia and Iran in March 2023, reported by Reuters and confirmed by both governments, created conditions for reduced proxy tensions, though full cessation of Yemen hostilities has not been achieved as of this reporting.
It is not known whether the Houthi outreach Trump referenced was conducted directly or through an intermediary state, nor whether it constitutes a formal position of the Houthi political leadership or a more informal contact. A complete account would require either a White House readout or independent confirmation from a named Houthi official.