The US military fired multiple strikes against the Houthi rebels in Yemen, the latest escalation against the Iran-backed terror group plaguing the Red Sea.
American navy ships and aircraft targeted Houthi command posts and weapons depots on Monday and Tuesday, destroying the facilities that have been attacking military and merchant vessels in the region, according to US Central Command.
The strikes were focused on the capital city of Sana’a and coastal locations around the Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, including “advanced conventional weapon (ACW) production and storage facilities.”
“These facilities were used in Houthi operations, such as attacks against U.S. Navy warships and merchant vessels in the southern Red Sea and Gulf of Aden,” CENTCOM said in a statement.
US Navy and Air Force aircraft also destroyed a Houthi coastal radar site and seven cruise missiles, the statement added.
CENTCOM said the strike was part of the US military’s efforts to crackdown on the Houthi’s attacks in the region, which began last year in solidarity with Hamas following Israel’s incursion in Gaza.
The rebels have repeatedly attacked cargo and tanker ships traveling through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, and have also launched missiles and drones at US forces stationed in the region.
Houthi spokesperson Mohammed Abdulsalam condemned the US strikes in Sana’a, and said the rebel forces would continue to defend themselves against American forces.
““The US aggression on Yemen is a blatant violation of the sovereignty of an independent state, and blatant support for Israel to encourage it to continue its crimes of genocide against the people of Gaza,” Abdulsalam said in a statement.
The US attacks come just days after the Israeli military launched a multi-wave attack across Yemen in retaliation for Houthi missile and drone strikes.
Israel Defense Forces warplanes hit key infrastructure like Sana’a International Airport — which is controlled by the Iran-backed terror group — in the Yemeni capital as well as power plants in Aziz and Ras Cantib.
The strike on the airport allegedly came within “a few meters” from where World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and his team were boarding their plane, according to the WHO chief.
With Post wires
