\US military strikes on the Ras Issa Port in Hodeidah, Yemen, on April 17, 2025, caused dozens of civilian casualties and significant damage to port infrastructure, Human Rights Watch said today. The attack should be investigated as a war crime.
As part of its military campaign against the Houthis, that began on March 15, the United States targeted Ras Issa Port, one of three ports in the town of Hodeidah through which about 70 percent of Yemen’s commercial imports and 80 percent of its humanitarian assistance passes.
Human Rights Watch identified via satellite imagery multiple attack sites. The independent research group Airwars found that the strikes killed 84 civilians and injured over 150.
“The US government’s decision to strike Ras Issa Port while hundreds of workers were present demonstrates a callous disregard for civilians’ lives,” said Niku Jafarnia of Human Rights Watch. “The attack’s impact on humanitarian aid could be enormous, particularly after Trump administration aid cutbacks.”
Human Rights Watch’s investigation, which included satellite imagery analysis and interviews with sources in Yemen, revealed extensive damage to fuel tanks, berths, customs areas, and cargo facilities. Operations at the port remain limited, threatening aid delivery to a population already facing severe food and water shortages.
Among the dead were 49 port employees, several truck drivers, and three children. US Central Command defended the strikes, claiming they aimed to “eliminate this source of fuel for the Iran-backed Houthi terrorists.”
However, Human Rights Watch argues that attacking the port as an “economic source of power” for the Houthis would make virtually any economic entity a potential military target. With no public evidence that weapons or military supplies were stored at the port, the organization believes the attack was either indiscriminate or disproportionate in its civilian impact.
The US also provided direct military assistance to the Saudi-led coalition in their conflict against the Houthis, starting in March 2015. Numerous coalition attacks during that conflict violated the laws of war.
“The recent US airstrikes in Yemen are just the latest causing civilian harm in the country over the past two decades,” Jafarnia said. “The Trump administration should reverse past US practice and provide prompt compensation to those unlawfully harmed.”
Source: Human Rights Watch
