2024-01-19 19:40:00
The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Red Sea (Photo: Europa Press)
The US military carried out a new round of strikes once morest Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Friday, targeting missile launchers preparing to attack ships in the Red Sea, the White House said.
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“This morning, US forces conducted three successful self-defense strikes once morest Houthi targets in Yemen,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters.
Officials, who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing military operations, said the strikes were carried out by F/A-18 aircraft from the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower. And they resembled similar U.S. attacks on Houthi shuttles that have been occurring almost daily this week.
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President Joe Biden acknowledged Thursday that the bombing of Houthi sites, including a massive series of attacks on Jan. 12 by U.S. and British forces, has not yet stopped the militants’ attacks on ships in the Red Sea that have disrupted global maritime transport.
Al-Masirah, a satellite news channel run by the Houthis, stated that airstrikes had occurred on Friday in the western city of Hodieda, targeting the al-Jabaana neighborhood in the west of the city. The location of the US strikes might not immediately be confirmed.
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In recent days, US warships and aircraft have shot down, in rapid succession, Houthi missiles regarding to be launched, highlighting the military’s growing ability to monitor, detect and attack militant activities in Yemen. But so far the attacks have not deterred the Houthis from attacking ships in the southern Red Sea or the Gulf of Aden, which have also occurred almost daily.
Houthi rebels in the capital of Yemen, Sanaa (Photo: EuropaPress)
The Biden administration has put the Houthis back on its list of specially designated global terrorists. The sanctions that come with this official designation are intended to separate violent extremist groups from their funding sources, while allowing vital humanitarian aid to continue reaching impoverished Yemenis.
And the White House has made clear that American retaliatory strikes will also be persistent.
“These attacks will continue for as long as they need to continue,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Thursday, adding: “I’m not going to telegraph blows one way or another.”
For months, the Houthis have attacked ships in the Red Sea that they say are linked to Israel or headed to Israeli ports. They claim that their attacks are intended to end the Israeli air and ground offensive in the Gaza Strip, triggered by the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas’ attack on October 7 in southern Israel. However, links with the ships attacked by the rebels have been weakening as the attacks continue.
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