Obama administration President
Barack Obama said in March 2015 that he has authorized U.S. soldiers to give logistical and intelligence aid to the Saudis in their military action in Yemen, launching a "Joint Planning Cell" with Saudi Arabia. This support involves aerial refueling, which allows coalition aircraft to spend more time over Yemen, and allowing some coalition members to home base aircraft instead of transferring them to Saudi Arabia. During the
Obama Administration, The United States has also been criticised for allegedly supplying
cluster munitions to Saudi Arabian forces. Cluster munitions are often considered unacceptable due their largely indiscriminate function and high risk of unexploded munitions. The United States is not party to the
Cluster Munition Coalition, which bans the use of Cluster munitions.
Human Rights Watch argued in August 2016 that the United States' direct support of the Saudi forces, in particular in providing intelligence and in-air refueling has made it a party to the conflict. On 13 October 2016, the fired Tomahawk missiles against Houthi-controlled radar installations "in the Dhubab district of Taiz province, a remote area overlooking the Bab al-Mandab Straight known for fishing and smuggling." In October 2016,
Reuters obtained documents under the
Freedom of Information Act showing officials had warned that the United States could be implicated in
war crimes for its support of Saudi Arabia's intervention.
First Trump administration , which humanitarian organizations argue has been the main contributing factor to the
outbreak of famine in Yemen. On 29 January 2017, the first United States raid authorised by President
Donald Trump ended in multiple civilian deaths, including the death of
Anwar al-Awlaki's eight-year-old daughter. According to the Guardian, the raid had been planned under the
Obama administration, but it had been thought that the underlying intelligence did not justify the risks involved in carrying out the raid. Colonel John Thomas, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command stated that the United States military forces were neither aware of the presence of Nawar al-Awlaki in the compound, nor that any of the estimated 14 people killed in the raid were civilians. and the United States Senate failed to overturn the veto with 53 votes instead of the 67 required. In June 2019,
US secretary of state Mike Pompeo, blocked the inclusion of Saudi Arabia on the US list of countries that recruit child soldiers, dismissing State department experts' findings.
Biden administration On 4 February 2021,
Joe Biden declared a halt to U.S. backing for Saudi-led operations in Yemen. Biden called in his first address as the U.S. president for the Yemen war to end, saying that the war has "created a humanitarian and strategic catastrophe." Nonetheless, the humanitarian situation in Yemen has worsened in many ways since Biden took office, according to
The Intercept. Secretary of State
Antony Blinken withdrew the Houthis from a terror list issued by his predecessor, Mike Pompeo, in his final days, which the U.N. and many relief organizations had warned would have significant consequences for the almost 24 million Yemeni people who are living in Houthi-held territory. The Biden administration said that the lifting of the designation was primarily meant to "alleviate or at least not worsen the suffering of the Yemeni civilians who live under Houthi control," which was not effective according to the field visit by
David Beasley, Executive Director of World Food Program, who "sounded the alarm" adding that one of the most serious consequences of the fuel shortage was widespread power outages at hospitals. When asked in January 2022 if he would consider the UAE's request that the U.S. re-designate the Houthis as a terrorist organization, Biden indicated the move was "under consideration." ==Analysis==