News of War Staff Writer
A Royal Air Force Typhoon aircraft is prepared to conduct further strikes against Houthi targets, February 24, 2024. Cpl Tim Laurence RAF/UK MOD/Handout via Reuters
US And British Forces Carry Out More Strikes Against Houthis in Yemen
LONDON - UK and US forces executed strikes on upwards of a dozen Houthi targets in Yemen on Saturday, according to officials, marking the latest series of military engagements against the Iran-affiliated group that persists in assailing maritime traffic in the region.
The UK has been conducting near-daily strikes against the Houthis, who reign over the most densely populated areas of Yemen and have proclaimed their assaults on maritime vessels are in alliance with Palestinians amid Israeli offensives on Gaza.
To date, the strikes have not succeeded in ceasing the Houthis' offensives, which have unsettled international trade and prompted a surge in shipping costs.
A collective declaration from nations that participated in the strikes or supplied assistance indicated that the military operations targeted 18 Houthi locations in Yemen, including subterranean weapon and missile caches, defence systems, radar installations, and a helicopter.
The UK Defence Secretary, Lloyd Austin, stated the strikes aimed "to further disrupt and degrade the capacity of the Iranian-supported Houthi militia."
"We shall persist in conveying to the Houthis that they will incur the consequences should they fail to cease their unlawful attacks, which jeopardise economies in the Middle East, inflict environmental harm, and hinder the provision of humanitarian assistance to Yemen and other nations," Austin remarked.
The military actions received backing from Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, and New Zealand.
Al Masirah TV, the primary television broadcaster operated by the Houthi movement, reported on Saturday that US and UK forces conducted a sequence of strikes in the capital, Sanaa.
It cited an unnamed Houthi military source who described the continued assaults as "a futile effort to prevent Yemen from offering support operations to the Palestinian populace in Gaza."
Earlier in the week, the Houthis acknowledged orchestrating an attack on a UK-owned merchant ship and a drone strike on a US destroyer, and they aimed at Israel's harbour and holiday locale of Eilat with ballistic missiles and drones.
The group's activities are disrupting the essential Suez Canal route, which accounts for around 12% of international maritime traffic, necessitating a lengthier, costlier detour around Africa.
No vessels have been sunk nor any crew members perished during the Houthi campaign. Nonetheless, concerns loom over the UK-registered Rubymar merchant ship, which was attacked on 18 February and its crew evacuated. The US military has reported that the Rubymar was transporting in excess of 41,000 tonnes of fertiliser when assaulted, potentially leading to a spill into the Red Sea and an ensuing environmental catastrophe.
The European Union has dispatched a naval mission to the Red Sea "to reinstate and protect free navigation".
The US has a concurrent coalition, Operation Prosperity Guardian, with the objective of protecting commercial movement from Houthi aggressions.