U.S. and British forces carried out multiple strikes in Yemen on Thursday, targeting multiple suspected Houthi terrorist positions.
The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that U.S. forces destroyed eight unmanned aerial vehicles in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen and over the Red Sea between 3:15 p.m. and 5 p.m. local time on Thursday, May 30. Separately, CENTCOM said American and British military components launched strikes on 13 suspected targets in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen on Thursday.
The joint U.S.-U.K. strikes come amid an ongoing pattern of Houthi attacks targeting shipments transiting the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
The Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah, are a Shiite Muslim faction in Yemen that is currently listed as a specially designated global terrorist (SDGT) by the United States. The Houthis have fought with the internationally-recognized government, the Republic of Yemen, since 2014.
While the primary conflict between the Houthis and the Republic of Yemen has died down in recent months, the Houthis have turned their opposition further north against the Israeli military campaign in the Gaza Strip and have launched missile and drone attacks on ships they suspect are supplying imports to Israel or are otherwise connected to Israel or its allies.
Israeli forces began their Gaza Strip campaign in the days after Hamas—a U.S. and Israeli-designated Palestinian terrorist organization—entered Israel and carried out widespread attacks. The Houthis have denounced what they describe as Israeli oppression of the Palestinian population and have vowed to continue efforts to strike Israel and disrupt international shipping until the current conflict in the Gaza Strip ends.
Houthis Confirm Casualties, Claim Return Fire
Houthi representatives on Friday acknowledged multiple U.S. and British strikes landed inside Yemen.
In a Friday press statement, Houthi forces spokesman Yahya Sare’e said the joint U.S.-U.K. strikes included four that landed in the Houthi-controlled Yemeni capital of Sana’a, two more within the wider Sana’a Governorate, another in the southwestern Yemeni city of Taiz, and six more across Yemen’s western coastal Hodeidah Governorate. Mr. Sare’e said one person was injured in one of the strikes inside Sana’a, while another 41 were wounded and 16 were killed during the six strikes across the Hodeidah Governorate.
Mr. Sare’e and another Houthi representative, Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, claimed several of the joint U.S.-U.K. strikes hit civilian targets, including homes, ports, and a radio station in Hodeidah.
Mr. Sare’e said the Houthis responded to these strikes by launching missiles at the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69). NTD News reached out to CENTCOM for comment about the Houthi claims but the military command did not respond by publication time.
Red Sea Standoff Continues
The new joint U.S.-U.K. strikes against the Houthis come as the Yemeni group claimed responsibility for attacks along the Red Sea shipping lane this week.
Mr. Sare’e claimed on Monday that Houthis launched missiles at three commercial ships and two U.S. warships. On Wednesday, a Houthi spokesman claimed the Yemeni faction launched another six attacks on Wednesday, including one that damaged the commercial ship MV Laax, and five more targeting other commercial vessels.
CENTCOM has, in turn, reported U.S. strikes on May 28 and 29, targeting suspected Houthi drones and missile launchers.
Thursday’s joint U.S.-U.K. strikes also come a day after Houthi officials claimed their forces shot down a U.S.-operated MQ-9 Reaper unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV). Videos and photos purporting to show the downing of the drone were posted online. NTD News reached out to CENTCOM for verification, but the U.S. military has yet to confirm the incident.
The U.S. government, across multiple presidential administrations, has waivered over whether to classify the Houthis as a terrorist group.
President Barack Obama’s administration had provided U.S. military logistical and targeting support for a Saudi Arabian-led military coalition fighting against the Houthis, though his administration did not elect to designate them as a terrorist group.
President Donald Trump’s administration continued U.S. support for the Saudi-led counter-Houthi coalition throughout his presidency but only moved to designate the Houthis as a specially designated global terrorist (SDGT) and as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) in his final days in office.
President Joe Biden’s administration reversed the Trump-era terror designations against the Houthis within days of taking office.
The Biden administration put the Houthis back on the SDGT list in January, as the Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping grew.
The Biden administration may again change course with the Houthis. Announcing the decision to add the Houthis to the SDGT list, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the move was intended to “promote accountability for the group’s terrorist activities” but said the United States “will reevaluate this designation” if the attacks stopped.
In April, U.S. special envoy for Yemen, Tim Lenderking, again indicated the Biden administration could withdraw the SDGT label if the Houthis discontinue their attacks.
“My hope as the envoy for Yemen is that we can find diplomatic offramps to find ways to de-escalate and allow us to pull back eventually the designation and of course to end the military strikes on Houthis’ military capability,” Mr. Lenderking told reporters on April 3.
Announcing the casualties from the joint U.S.-U.K. strikes on Friday, Mr. Sare’e said the Houthi attacks will continue “until the aggression stops and the siege on the oppressed Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip is lifted.”