U.S. Airstrikes on Yemen Continue as Houthi Naval Attacks Magnify

Airstrikes by the United States continue hitting sites affiliated with Yemen's Ansar Allah (Houthi) group, which has launched dozens of drone and missile attacks on ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since last year.

Today, the U.S. Central Command said in a statement its forces conducted yesterday strikes against four mobile Houthi anti-ship cruise missiles (ASCM) and one Houthi unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in Houthi-controlled areas.

It also said the U.S. forces on Friday shot down three UAVs launched from Iranian-backed Houthi-controlled areas toward the Gulf of Aden. Since January 12, the U.S. forces have launched a series of strikes on Houthi sites in Yemen, aiming to degrade the Houthi military capabilities.

However, the Houthi attacks on shipping lanes in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden continue nonstop. Today, A vessel traveling 50 nautical miles southeast of Yemen's city of Aden reported two explosions in the sea ahead of it. The vessel and crew were reported as safe, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said.

The Houthi group says they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians over the war in Gaza. UKMTO said earlier that the authorities were investigating the incident.

On Wednesday, a Houthi missile attack on a ship in the Gulf of Aden killed three sailors, two from Philipenese and one from Vietnam, and four others injured. It was the casualty since the Red Sea tensions began in November last year.

The Houthi movement chief, Abdulmalek Al-Houthi, said on Thursday that their operations in the Yemeni territorial waters will continue, warning that his group's coming operations will be "greater".

Al-Houthi indicated the number of operations in support of Gaza since October last year reached 96 operations, explaining that 403 ballistic and winged missiles and drones were launched and 61 ships were targeted.