(Sanaa) American and British forces carried out air strikes in different sectors of Yemen during the night from Thursday to Friday in order to “undermine” the military capabilities of the Houthi rebels involved in attacks against maritime traffic in the Red Sea in support of Gaza.
These joint strikes were carried out against 13 Houthi sites to prevent future attacks by Yemeni rebels, the US Middle East Military Command (Centcom) said.
“British forces took part in a joint operation with US forces aimed at undermining the military capabilities of the Houthis who continue to carry out attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden,” the ministry previously said of Defense in a brief press release.
According to the ministry, intelligence “confirmed” that two sites in the Hodeida sector were involved in attacks on maritime traffic, with houses serving as drone pilothouses and places to store long-term flying devices. scope.
Another site located south of Hodeida was also used to carry out drone attacks against international maritime traffic, according to this source.
Witnesses and local media previously reported strikes that targeted different areas of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa and the port city of Hodeida.
AFP journalists heard loud explosions in these two cities. According to the al-Masira channel, controlled by the Houthi rebels, strikes also targeted telecommunications infrastructure in the city of Taiz.
Al-Masira reported “several” deaths and injuries in the strikes, reports that it was not possible to independently verify at this stage.
The Houthis quickly attributed all of these airstrikes to American and British forces deployed in the region.
Ships hit
The Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack on a bulk carrier and several other vessels off Yemen on Wednesday, saying it was a response to Israeli strikes on Rafah, a Palestinian town that has become the epicenter of the war in the Gaza strip.
A Greek ship was notably damaged this week by Houthi missile fire off the coast of Yemen where American forces also intercepted five drones, according to the American Military Command for the Middle East (Centcom).
And an oil tanker was hit in mid-November by a missile off the coast of Yemen, according to a maritime security company.
Since November, the Houthis have carried out dozens of attacks in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, claiming to target ships in solidarity with the Palestinians, in the context of the deadly war between Israel and Hamas.
The United States, a close ally of Israel, set up a multinational force in December to protect navigation in this strategic area and launched strikes in Yemen against the Houthis in January, with the help of the United Kingdom.
But these strikes have not deterred the Houthis, who control large swaths of Yemen and say they are now also targeting American and British ships, in addition to those linked to Israel.
The October 7 attack in Israel resulted in the deaths of more than 1,189 people, mostly civilians, according to a count carried out by AFP based on the latest official data available.
In retaliation for the attack, Israel vowed to annihilate Hamas, which it considers a terrorist organization along with the United States and the European Union, and launched an offensive that has so far killed 36,224 dead in the Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas administration’s health ministry.
Palestinian Hamas, Yemeni Houthi rebels and Lebanese Hezbollah are part of the “axis of resistance”, a grouping of armed movements hostile to Israel and the United States, supported by Iran.