Washington: The U.S. and Britain struck 13 Houthi targets in several locations in Yemen on Thursday in response to a recent surge in attacks by the Iran-backed militia group on ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden over the Israel-Hamas war, three U.S. officials said. The Houthi rebels said the airstrikes killed at least 16 people and wounded 35 others.
According to the officials, American and British fighter jets and U.S. ships hit a wide range of underground facilities, missile launchers, command and control sites, a Houthi vessel and other facilities. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to provide early details of an ongoing military operation.
Also struck by the U.S. were eight uncrewed aerial vehicles in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen that were determined to be presenting a threat to American and coalition forces.
The Houthis’ Al Masirah satellite news station highlighted one of the strikes, which hit a radio building in the Red City port city of Hodeida. It aired images of one bloodied man being carried down stairs and others receiving treatment at a hospital.
The Houthis have launched more than 50 attacks on shipping, seized one vessel and sunk another since November, according to the U.S. Maritime Administration.
Shipping through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden has declined because of the threat.
U.S. warships, meanwhile, took out a number of missile launchers and drones targeting vessels in the region over the past week.
President Joe Biden and other senior leaders have repeatedly warned that the U.S. won’t tolerate the Houthi attacks against commercial shipping. But the counterattacks haven’t appeared to diminish the Houthis’ campaign against shipping in the region.
