The United States and the United Kingdom have carried out a second series of overnight strikes on Yemen, targeting territories controlled by the Houthi rebel movement "Ansar Allah," as reported by the Houthi-owned Al Masirah TV channel.
According to the channel, the provinces of Dhamar, Taizz, Al Hudaydah, and Al Bayda were subjected to the attacks. Al Masirah mentioned that one of the strikes hit a Houthi facility in the village of As-Salif, situated in the province of Al Hudaydah along the Red Sea coast.
The US Central Command of the Armed Forces (CENTCOM) confirmed that the strikes targeted 14 Houthi rocket launchers deemed a direct threat to merchant ships and US Navy vessels in the region.
On January 17, the Houthis attacked the US-flagged Marshall Islands dry cargo ship Genco Picardy in the Gulf of Aden. CENTCOM stated that the dry cargo ship sustained damage, but its crew remained unharmed.
Amidst the escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis have declared their intention to strike Israeli territory and prevent associated ships from passing through the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait until operations in the Palestinian enclave cease. CENTCOM estimates that since mid-November of the previous year, the Houthis have targeted over 20 civilian vessels in the Red Sea.
On the night of January 12, US and British military forces, utilizing planes, ships, and submarines, conducted attacks on Ansar Allah targets in multiple Yemeni cities, including Sana'a and Al Hudaydah. US President Joe Biden asserted that the strikes were defensive responses to Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, targeting missile and drone sites as well as radar stations.
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Based on materials from TASS