New American strikes against Houthis in Yemen – 01/18/2024 at 12:20 pm.

The American military targeted the Houthis on their territory in Yemen for the fourth time in less than a week, during the night between Wednesday and Thursday, with ground strikes on 14 missiles from the pro-Iranian rebels attacking them. Away from marine traffic for weeks.

The American strikes came hours after Washington once again described Yemeni rebels as a “terrorist” organization as they continued their attacks on merchant ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, in a Middle East that is close to a regional flare-up. .

According to the rebel channel Al-Masirah, the nighttime strike targeted “the governorates of Hodeidah, Taiz, Dhamar, Al-Bayda and Saada”.

Hodeidah resident Hani Kayed, 44, told AFP he heard an explosion “around 2:16 local time” on Thursday, coming from the east of the city, near the airport.

US Middle Command wrote in a statement that on Wednesday evening US military forces “struck 14 Iran-backed Houthi missiles that were poised to launch from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen.” X.

“These missiles on the launch pads posed an immediate threat to US Navy merchant ships and vessels in the area and could be launched at any time, prompting the intervention of US forces to exercise their inherent right and responsibility to defend themselves, ” added the American. command

“We will continue our activities to protect the lives of innocent sailors,” CENTCOM Commander Michael Eric Kurilla was quoted as adding in the press release.

– Multinational Force –

A Houthi official told al-Masirah that his group “will continue to target ships heading to the ports of occupied Palestine, regardless of the US-British offensive to try to stop us.”

Off Yemen’s coast, in the Red Sea and in the Gulf of Aden, these rebels, in a nearly decade-long war against the Yemeni government, target merchant ships bound for Israel.

Actions they say they are carrying out in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, the enclave shelled and besieged by the Israeli army after an unprecedented attack by Hamas in Israel on October 7.

An increase in Houthi attacks has prompted retaliatory American and British strikes in recent days, with a third salvo on Tuesday hitting four missiles on the ground.

Last month, the United States established a multinational navy to protect shipping in the Red Sea, a major transit route that accounts for 12 percent of global trade.

American forces have repeatedly intercepted missiles and drones fired from Yemen, where rebels control much of the region.