United States and British warplanes, ships and submarines struck across Yemen overnight in retaliation against Houthi forces for attacks on Red Sea shipping, a widening of the regional conflict triggered by Israel's war in Gaza.
Witnesses confirmed explosions throughout Yemen. They said raids targeted a military base adjacent to Sanaa airport, a military site near Taiz airport, a Houthi naval base in Hodeidah and military sites in Hajjah governorate.
"These targeted strikes are a clear message that the United States and our partners will not tolerate attacks on our personnel or allow hostile actors to imperil freedom of navigation," US President Joe Biden said in a statement late on Jan 11.
The Houthis said five of their fighters had been killed in a total of 73 air strikes. They said they would retaliate for the strikes and continue their attacks, adding that all "interests" of the US and Britain are now "legitimate targets".
A US official said more than a dozen locations were targeted in strikes that were not just symbolic but also intended to weaken the Houthis' military capabilities.
"We were going after very specific capability in very specific locations with precision munitions," the official said.
US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin, who is in hospital due to surgery complications, said in a statement that the strikes targeted Houthi capabilities including drones, ballistic and cruise missiles, coastal radar and air surveillance.
The US said Australia, Bahrain, Canada and the Netherlands supported the operation.
This story is from the January 13, 2024 edition of The Straits Times.
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This story is from the January 13, 2024 edition of The Straits Times.
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