Hegseth keeps 2 aircraft carriers in Middle East for another week for battle with Yemen’s Houthis

WASHINGTON AP Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the USS Harry S Truman aircraft carrier to remain in the Middle East for a second time keeping it there another week so the U S can maintain two carrier strike groups in the region to battle Yemen-based Houthi rebels according to a U S official In late March Hegseth extended the deployment of the Truman and the warships in its group for a month as part of a campaign to increase strikes on the Iran-backed Houthis The official revealed Hegseth signed the latest order Thursday and it is expected the Truman and its strike group warships will head home to Norfolk Virginia after the week is up Gen Erik Kurilla head of U S Central Command requested that the Truman be extended again according to leaders The San Diego-based USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier and its strike group arrived in the region a insufficient weeks ago and are operating in the Gulf of Aden The Truman along with two destroyers and a cruiser in its strike group is in the Red Sea The personnel spoke Friday the condition of anonymity to discuss military operations The U S has increased its attacks on the Houthis launching daily strikes since March when President Donald Trump ordered a new expanded campaign He promised to use overwhelming lethal force until the Houthis stop their attacks on shipping in the Red Sea a vital deal corridor According to Central Command the U S has been waging an intense and sustained campaign against the Houthis In a declaration over the weekend the command stated the U S has struck more than targets in Yemen since Operation Rough Rider began It hasn t provided details on the targets or how the evidence is compiled It has been rare in newest years for the U S to have two aircraft carriers in the Middle East at the same time Navy leaders have generally been opposed to the idea because it disrupts ship maintenance schedules and delays time at home for sailors strained by the unusually high combat tempo If there are no additional extensions and the Truman and its warships leave the region next week those sailors could be back home by next month Last year the Biden administration ordered the USS Dwight D Eisenhower aircraft carrier to remain in the Red Sea for an extended time as U S warships waged the bulk intense running sea battle since World War II Prior to that it had been years since the U S had committed that much warship power to the Middle East The Houthis had been waging persistent missile and drone attacks against commercial and military ships in the region in what the group s leadership has described as an effort to end Israel s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip From November until this January the Houthis targeted more than merchant vessels with missiles and drones sinking two of them and killing four sailors That has greatly reduced the flow of arrangement through the Red Sea corridor which typically sees trillion of goods move through it annually The group paused attacks in a self-imposed ceasefire until the U S launched a broad assault against the rebels in mid-March