Poli Alert Politics & Civics
Related Articles
U.S. military operations in Yemen killed 153 civilians and wounded nearly 250 others in three attacks last year, according to a Pentagon review that represents the Trump administration’s first public acknowledgment of significant civilian casualties caused by U.S. forces since President Donald Trump returned to office.
The Pentagon concluded that the three April 2025 attacks “more likely than not” caused civilian harm, according to a copy of the review obtained by The Washington Post. Fifteen additional incidents remain under investigation.
The findings are included in an annual report required by Congress that examines allegations of civilian casualties resulting from U.S. military operations.
The Pentagon has not yet publicly released the report, saying it expects to do so in the coming months.
Three attacks caused hundreds of civilian casualties
The review identifies three April 2025 strikes as causing significant civilian casualties.
A U.S. attack on April 17 at the Ras Isa Port in western Yemen killed 80 people and wounded 171 others, according to the Pentagon’s assessment.
On April 28, another U.S. strike killed 68 civilians in northwestern Yemen. The Washington Post previously reported that U.S. forces had struck a facility where African migrants were being held. That investigation verified at least 38 deaths.
An April 6 attack in Sanaa, Yemen’s capital, killed five people at a residence, according to Pentagon documents provided to Congress.
Despite acknowledging the civilian casualties, the Pentagon determined that none of the three cases warranted condolence payments to survivors.
That decision has drawn criticism from human rights advocates, who have questioned whether the military moved too quickly to close the cases.
It remains unclear whether any U.S. military personnel have faced disciplinary action over the attacks.
Trump’s Yemen campaign targeted the Houthis
Trump authorized the U.S. military campaign in Yemen shortly after returning to the White House as Houthi militants continued attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea.
The Houthis, who are aligned with Iran, said their attacks were intended to pressure Israel over its war in Gaza.
The U.S. campaign lasted roughly 50 days, with American forces striking at least 1,000 targets, according to Pentagon figures. The administration said the operation was intended to weaken the Houthis’ military capabilities and restore freedom of navigation in waters surrounding Yemen.
The campaign was the first major military operation conducted under Trump after his return to office.
It also came shortly after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth dismantled a Pentagon office dedicated to reducing civilian harm in military operations.
The Trump administration has emphasized military “lethality” while reducing the size of the Pentagon’s civilian-harm staff by more than 90%, according to reporting cited in the review.
Human rights organizations have argued that the approach could weaken safeguards designed to protect civilians during U.S. military operations.
Human rights groups question accountability
Human Rights Watch and other organizations have described some of the Yemen strikes as potential war crimes.
Emily Tripp, executive director of Airwars, an organization that tracks civilian harm from military operations, said the Pentagon’s unresolved investigations raise questions about whether the military can adequately investigate civilian casualties as the administration expands military operations elsewhere.
Airwars estimates that at least 224 civilians were killed by U.S. operations in Yemen between March and May 2025. The organization has recorded 258 civilian deaths from all previous U.S. campaigns in Yemen dating to 2002.
Tripp said the number of unresolved Yemen cases is particularly concerning given the scale of subsequent U.S. military operations.
The Pentagon review also did not find any civilian casualties from U.S. military operations in the Western Hemisphere, despite the Trump administration’s campaign against suspected drug traffickers that has resulted in at least 221 deaths.
Critics have disputed the administration’s characterization of those operations as military actions against combatants, arguing that the targets were suspected criminals rather than lawful military opponents.
The Pentagon has rejected that argument.
Biden administration had expanded civilian-harm safeguards
The Pentagon’s approach to civilian casualties marks a shift from efforts undertaken during the Biden administration.
Biden also authorized military operations against the Houthis during the final two years of his presidency after the group began attacking commercial shipping in response to the Gaza war.
His administration expanded Pentagon efforts to investigate civilian casualties and reduce the risk of harm to noncombatants after several high-profile incidents, including a 2021 U.S. drone strike in Kabul that mistakenly killed 10 civilians, including seven children.
The Trump administration subsequently reduced the personnel devoted to civilian-harm investigations.
The Pentagon’s latest review nevertheless includes findings from operations conducted before Trump returned to office.
In one previously unacknowledged case, a 2018 U.S. strike in Iraq that mistakenly killed Iraqi police officers also killed eight civilians and wounded 14 others, according to the report.
Pentagon investigators conducted a site visit and interviewed witnesses before reaching that conclusion.
Questions remain over U.S. military accountability
The Pentagon’s acknowledgment of 153 civilian deaths in Yemen provides a rare public accounting of the consequences of U.S. military operations during Trump’s first year back in office.
But the report leaves broader questions unanswered.
Fifteen additional Yemen incidents remain under review, while the Pentagon has not publicly detailed whether military personnel faced discipline or whether survivors could receive compensation.
The review also does not address allegations of civilian harm connected to the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.
Joanna Naples-Mitchell, an attorney and senior adviser at the Center for Civilians in Conflict, said the acknowledgment of individual cases is significant even as many other civilian deaths remain unrecognized.
The Pentagon’s eventual public release of the report could provide additional details about how the military investigated the Yemen strikes and whether its findings will lead to changes in targeting, oversight or compensation policies.
