American and British airstrikes hit different areas of Yemen, during the night of Thursday May 30 to Friday May 31, in order to “mine” the military capabilities of the Houthi rebels. They have been involved since November 2023 in attacks against maritime traffic in the Red Sea in support of Hamas in Gaza. These joint strikes were carried out against thirteen sites to prevent future attacks by Yemeni rebels, said the US military Command for the Middle East (Centcom). The capital Sanaa and the port city of Hodeida were hit, witnesses and local media reported. Journalists from Agence France-Presse 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 “ dead and injured in these strikes, information which it has not been possible to independently verify at this stage. The Houthi channel quickly attributed all of these airstrikes to American and British forces deployed in the region.
“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”immediately confirmed the British Ministry of Defense in a brief press release.
According to London, information has “confirmed” that two sites in the Hodeida sector were involved in attacks on maritime traffic, with houses serving as drone cockpits and places to store long-range flying devices. According to the defense press release, another site located south of Hodeida was also used to carry out drone attacks against international maritime traffic.
Recent new Houthi attacks on ships
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, announced the American military Command for the Middle East (Centcom). An oil tanker was also hit in mid-November by a missile off the coast of Yemen, according to a maritime security company, among dozens of other attacks in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
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 militiamen in January, with help from the United Kingdom. Houthis. But these strikes have not deterred them, who control large swaths of Yemen and who say they are now also targeting American and British ships, in addition to those linked to Israel. Along with Palestinian Hamas and Lebanese Hezbollah, these Yemeni rebels are part of “the axis of resistance”a grouping of armed movements hostile to Israel and the United States, supported by Iran.