On Saturday evening, the US and Britain launched airstrikes in Yemen including the capital Sana’a hitting numerous weapons depots.
A US defence official said the facilities were equipped with advanced weapons used to target ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, adding that the US used fighter jets to carry out the attack. The strikes came as Iran-backed Houthis have been targeting ships in the Red Sea, one of the world’s busiest waterways, for months, calling the attacks a response to Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip against Hamas.
After over a year of Houthi attacks on US and international vessels, Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin announced in October that the US had struck the militant group for the first time using B-2 stealth bombers, sending a clear message to Iran. Austin later said the US could hit targets “that our adversaries seek to keep out of reach, no matter how deeply buried underground, hardened, or fortified.”
Since January, the two countries have repeatedly carried out attacks in Yemen to prevent Hussein rebels from attacking Israeli-linked commercial ships travelling through the Red Sea. In July, strikes in Hodeidah province killed at least 16 people, the Houthis said.
The US has stepped up its military posture in the region amid Israel’s war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip and conflict with Hezbollah in Lebanon. “We will continue to make clear to the Houthis that there will be consequences for their illegal and reckless attacks,” Austin said at the time.
The Iran-led alliance says it will not stop striking Israel and its allies until a ceasefire is reached in the Palestinian enclave. The Israeli military has caused the deaths of more than 43,000 people in Gaza since last October, with 70 per cent being women and children, according to a UN report. The devastating war began after a Hamas attack in southern Israel that killed over 1,100 people. More than 200 people have been taken prisoner.
