US launches fresh strikes against Houthis in Yemen

The US military carried out fresh strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen early on Wednesday.

The strikes destroyed two Houthi anti-ship missiles that were aimed at the Red Sea and were preparing to launch, according to US military officials.

The strikes took place at around 2.30am local time [11.30pm GMT Tuesday]. It comes a day after the US and UK launched a second round of joint strikes against the Iran-backed Houthis.

Earlier, officials said the US and UK took out Houthi missile storage sites and launchers, with defence secretary Grant Shapps calling it a “self-defence” measure to prevent further attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

The UK also joined the US in carrying out strikes against the group in Yemen earlier this month, but ships have continued to be targeted along vital trade routes.

The Iran-backed militant group claims it began striking international cargo vessels, particularly those with a connection to Israel, in solidarity with the Palestinians and to pressure Israel to end its air and ground offensive in Gaza.

Regarding the fresh strikes early on Wednesday, the US Central Command wrote on X/Twitter that “US forces identified the missiles in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen and determined that they presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and the US Navy ships in the region. US forces subsequently struck and destroyed the missiles in self-defence”.

Aside from the joint strikes with Britain and other allies, the US has continued to carry out almost daily unilateral strikes of its own against the Houthis. Wednesday morning’s represented the ninth since the retaliatory strikes began.

Mohammad Ali al-Houthi, head of the Houthis’ supreme revolutionary committee, wrote on X after the joint strikes by the US and the UK: “Trust well that every operation and every aggression against our country will not be without a response.”

Meanwhile, the US also carried out “proportionate” strikes on three facilities used by the Iran-backed militant group Kataib Hezbollah in Iraq. US defence secretary Lloyd Austin said the strikes were “in direct response” to attacks against US and coalition allies in Iraq and Syria.

He said: “These precision strikes are in direct response to a series of escalatory attacks against US and Coalition personnel in Iraq and Syria by Iranian-sponsored militias.”

He added: “We do not seek to escalate conflict in the region. We are fully prepared to take further measures to protect our people and our facilities. We call on these groups and their Iranian sponsors to immediately cease these attacks.”

On Saturday, four American personnel suffered traumatic brain injuries when Iraq’s Ain al-Asad airbase came under attack from a barrage of ballistic missiles and rockets launched by militants supported by Iran from within Iraq. A militant group called Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for the attack.

Reuters cited unidentified sources as claiming that Tuesday’s strikes in Iraq killed at least two militants and four were reportedly wounded.

Saturday’s attacks came following a US drone strike in Baghdad earlier this month, resulting in the death of a leader from a pro-Iran militia.

The US forces stationed in Iraq and Syria have been targetted by the Iran-backed militant groups about 150 times since Israel started its invasion of Gaza in October.