A Russian outlet reported that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman requested US airstrikes against Houthis in Yemen to halt their advance, but President Trump allegedly refused. The report cites unnamed US media and comes amid continued Houthi activity.
A Russian media outlet reported Friday that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman asked President Donald Trump to launch airstrikes against the Iran-backed Houthi movement in Yemen to halt its territorial advances, and that Trump allegedly refused. The report, citing unnamed U.S. media, follows a rapid sequence of earlier reports from Israeli and American news organizations that have documented the same request and refusal in greater detail throughout the day.
The story first emerged at 07:11 Jerusalem time Friday when journalist Barak Ravid reported, citing two U.S. officials, that MBS had called Trump twice on Thursday urging American military action as Houthis approached a vital Red Sea chokepoint. Axios later that morning added that CENTCOM commander Brad Cooper visited Saudi Arabia for urgent coordination and that up to 200 U.S. troops are deployed there. The Zioneer then reported, citing Arab-world channels, that Trump refused but sent military advisers, and later specified — citing a security analyst — that Trump told Riyadh its own military could handle the task and that the refusal reflected a desire for European and Gulf states to bear the consequences of the Bab el-Mandeb crisis.
The backdrop to these high-level exchanges is the Houthis' continued territorial gains in Yemen and increasingly bold attacks on Red Sea shipping lanes, threatening the strategic Bab al-Mandeb strait. As The Zioneer reported earlier Friday, Saudi oil output has fallen to its lowest since 1990 and the kingdom is effectively blockaded at both the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb.
The Russian report's sourcing — unnamed U.S. media — remains unverified independently. While the core claim of a Saudi request and U.S. refusal has been corroborated by multiple news organizations citing American and regional sources, key details including the exact composition of the U.S. advisory mission and any follow-up actions remain unconfirmed.
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