Houthis Told U.S. They Would Not Attack Israeli or American Ships

U.S. embassy personnel met Houthi representatives in Muscat on Sunday, according to five sources familiar with the talks. Two sources said Oman helped organize the meeting, while a Yemeni source said the Iran-backed group pledged not to attack Israeli, American or other commercial vessels, except Saudi ships. The Houthi delegation included sanctioned Muscat-based official Mohammed Abdulsalam and Abdelmalik al-Ajiri, according to the report. The contacts follow the Houthis’ seizure of strategic Red Sea coastline and their renewed campaign against Saudi Arabia, while Washington has declined direct military intervention.