Global War on Terrorism Medals authorized for Houthi operations

Service members participating in operations against Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen are now authorized to receive the Global War on Terrorism Service and Expeditionary Medals, according to a Pentagon spokesperson.

In a June 18 memo, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Reserve Affairs Ronald T. Keohane stated personnel involved in three Red Sea missions combating Houthi rebels — Operations Prosperity Guardian, Poseidon Archer and Pandora Throttle — were qualified for the award.

The Global War on Terrorism Service and Expeditionary Medals were signed into existence in 2003 through an executive order by President George W. Bush. The Expeditionary Medal is for service members mobilized to a specific unit, while the Service Medal is for personnel who directly or indirectly supported operations.

The Global War on Terrorism Service Medal was considered an essentially automatic award for troops since its introduction in 2003, with the Army, for example, stating in 2004 that all active duty troops who served after Sept. 11, 2001, deserved the award because they’d all “served in some way in support of GWOT.”

However, eligibility for the award has narrowed over the years. Eligibility requirements were amended so that troops had to serve 30 consecutive or 60 nonconsecutive days in support of a Global War on Terrorism-focused deployment, and in 2022, the Defense Department restricted the award further to service members who “directly served in a designated military [counter-terrorism] operation” for at least 30 days.

For Houthi operations, the area of eligibility for the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal includes “total airspace, land area, territorial waters, and boundaries of the Southern Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Bab A-l Mandeb Strait,” according to the June 18 memo.

The U.S. military has been engaged against the Houthis since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack against Israel, as U.S. warships and fighter jets have destroyed Houthi missiles and drones targeting civilian and military ships in the Red Sea and U.S. bombers have struck targets in Yemen.

In April, the Navy authorized combat awards and devices for sailors serving in the Red Sea area. Sailors from the destroyer Carney and the Dwight D. Eisenhower carrier strike group have received the Combat Action Ribbon for their efforts to stop Houthi attacks during Middle East deployments.