Earlier on Saturday, the U.S. military struck six Houthi anti-ship missiles (file photo)
United States Washington:
The United States and Britain struck dozens of targets in Yemen on Saturday in response to repeated attacks on shipping by Iran-backed Houthi rebels that have disrupted global trade and endangered lives.
The coordinated airstrikes in Yemen come a day after the United States launched a wave of unilateral attacks on Iran-linked targets in Iraq and Syria in response to the killing of three American soldiers in Jordan on January 28.
The attack hit “36 Houthi targets in 13 locations across Yemen in response to ongoing Houthi attacks on international and commercial shipping and naval vessels transiting the Red Sea,” with support from the United States, Britain and other countries said in a statement.
“The purpose of these precision strikes is to disrupt and degrade the Houthis’ capabilities to threaten global trade and the lives of innocent sailors,” the statement said.
The attack targeted locations associated with the Houthis’ deep-buried weapons storage facilities, missile systems and launchers, air defense systems and radars.
Central Command (CENTCOM) said the U.S. military struck six Houthi anti-ship missiles early Saturday “prepared to launch against ships in the Red Sea.”
The military command also said on Saturday that the U.S. military had shot down eight drones near Yemen the day before and destroyed four others before launching.
Central Command said the four drones that were hit belonged to the Houthis, but did not identify the country or organization associated with the drones that were hit.
The Houthis began targeting Red Sea shipping in November, saying they attacked ships linked to Israel in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which has been ravaged by the war between Israel and Hamas.
U.S. and British troops launched strikes against the Houthis, who later declared U.S. and British interests also legitimate targets.
In addition to fighting the Houthis, the United States has established a multinational naval task force aimed at protecting shipping on this transportation route, which carries 12% of global trade.
Israel’s destructive campaign in Gaza, which began with an unprecedented Hamas attack on October 7, has fueled growing anger across the Middle East, triggering violence by Iranian-backed groups in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Yemen.
Over the weekend, a drone crashed into a base in Jordan, killing three U.S. soldiers and injuring more than 40 people — an attack that Washington blamed on Iranian-backed forces.
The United States responded on Friday with strikes on dozens of targets at seven Tehran-linked installations in Iraq and Syria, but stopped short of hitting Iranian territory.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
