Internashonal

U.S. strikes Yemen again as campaign to thwart Houthis intensifies

Published on January 16, 2024

U.S. forces on Tuesday launched a new round of strikes on Yemen’s Houthis, targeting what officials said was four missiles apparently being readied for attacks on commercial shipping vessels.

The early morning operation marks at least the third time in the last week that military action has been taken against the Iran-backed group, signaling what could be the beginning of an enduring campaign. The militants have launched nearly 30 attacks on merchant ships in the region since November, linking their actions to the war in Gaza and Western support for Israel.

The latest strike occurred at 4:15 a.m. in Yemen, U.S. Central Command, which oversees operations across the region, said in a statement. The Houthi missiles “presented an imminent threat to both merchant and U.S. Navy ships,” said a U.S. military official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue. The U.S. strikes followed a militant attack Monday on the M/V Gilbrater Eagle, a U.S. owned and operated ship. The strikes were first reported by Reuters.

The Houthis once again appeared undeterred.

Later Tuesday, at about 1:45 p.m. in Yemen, the militants launched another anti-ship ballistic missile into the Red Sea, Central Command said. The crew of a commercial vessel, the M/V Zografia, a Maltese-flagged ship, reported to authorities that it had been struck but was still seaworthy and would continue on its voyage.

Combined, the violence make clear that even after U.S. and British forces launched dozens of strikes last week on Houthi targets, the militants are intent to and capable of continuing their attacks on commercial shipping in an unpredictable cycle of violence.

U.S. forces have sought to stem the attacks in part by interdicting the supply of weapons from Iran to Yemen. On Thursday, Navy SEALs boarded a small ship known as a dhow in the Arabian Sea, finding Iranian-made missile warheads and related weapons components. Two SEALs were lost at sea during the operation, prompting a search-and-rescue operation that was still underway Tuesday.

Alex Horton contributed to this report.

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