U.S. airstrikes targeted Houthi facilities in Yemen on Saturday night, a U.S. defense official said on Sunday, confirming previous reports from a Houthi-run TV station.
U.S. Central Command forces “conducted multiple airstrikes on numerous Iran-backed Houthi weapons storage facilities within Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen,” the official told ABC News.
“The targets contained various advanced conventional weapons used to target military and civilian vessels navigating international waters throughout the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden,” the official said.
Further details on the strikes would be provided soon, he added.
According to Yemen’s Al-Masirah television, the United States and United Kingdom carried out two airstrikes in the capital, Sanaa, in the Amran governorate and in the northwestern Al Hudaydah governorate.
Residents of the Al Hudaydah province’s southern district, At-Tuhayat, reported hearing loud explosions at Houthi sites.
In October 2023, the Iran-backed Houthis attacked Israel and international shipping in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and particularly in the Bab-al-Mandeb Strait between Yemen and the Horn of Africa.
Transit through the strait at the start of October was down more than 60% year-over-year, according to Lloyd’s List Intelligence.
Four major shipping companies, Mediterranean Shipping Company S.A., Maersk, CMA CGM and Hapag-Lloyd AG, have redirected their ships around the Cape of Good Hope, a trip which takes about 40% longer than through the Suez Canal.
U.S. military forces, including U.S. Air Force B-2 bombers, struck five underground weapons storage locations in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen on Oct. 16.
“For over a year, the Iran-backed Houthis, Specially Designated Global Terrorists, have recklessly and unlawfully attacked U.S. and international vessels transiting the Red Sea, the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, and the Gulf of Aden,” U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced following those strikes.
“The Houthis’ illegal attacks continue to disrupt the free flow of international commerce, threaten environmental catastrophe, and put innocent civilian lives and U.S. and partner forces’ lives at risk,” he added.
On Dec. 18, 2023, in announcing the formation of a coalition to counter the Houthis, Austin said, “This is an international challenge that demands collective action.”
The coalition, named “Operation Prosperity Guardian,” includes the United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles and Spain.
