A new round of coordinated airstrikes by the US and UK has been launched against Houthi targets in Yemen.
According to the Pentagon, eight targets were hit on Monday by the strikes, including a Houthi missile and surveillance system as well as an underground storage facility.
The Houthis, who are supported by Iran, have been pursuing ships they claim are connected to Israel and the West and that pass through the crucial Red Sea trade route.
According to the US and the UK, they are working to safeguard the “free flow of commerce.”
“An additional round of proportionate and necessary strikes” against the Houthis was confirmed by a joint Pentagon statement.
“Our goal remains to defuse tensions and restore stability in the Red Sea, but let us reiterate our warning to Houthi leadership: in the face of persistent threats, we will not hesitate to defend lives and the free flow of commerce in one of the most important waterways in the world,” the statement continued.
The US has now attacked Houthi targets in Yemen eight times. This is the second joint operation with the UK following coordinated strikes that were executed on January 11.
The UK has sent a “clear message,” and foreign secretary Lord David Cameron told reporters that it will “continue to degrade” the Houthis’ ability to launch attacks.
When asked if the strikes would increase Middle East tensions, Lord Cameron responded that the Houthis were the ones making things worse and that he was “confident” the earlier strikes had been successful.
He continued by saying that the UK wants to see a “swift end to the conflict” in Gaza and that the Houthis’ claim that the strikes were connected to the conflict between Israel and Hamas “shouldn’t be accepted.”
The UK had demanded a “immediate humanitarian pause,” according to Lord Cameron, and “we want it to turn into permanent, sustainable ceasefire.” He said he will present the plan when he visits the area this week.
Australia, Bahrain, Canada, and the Netherlands reportedly supported the strikes, according to the joint statement.
The strikes on Monday were carried out by US fighter jets from the USS Eisenhower carrier.
The US military has four RAF Typhoons and two Voyager tankers supporting them, according to the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD).
“Our aircraft struck multiple targets at two military locations near Sanaa airfield with Paveway IV precision guided bombs. The MoD claimed that these locations were being used to facilitate the intolerable attacks against international shipping that were still occurring in the Red Sea.
As with the previous strikes, “a very rigorous analysis was applied to plan the strikes in line with UK standard practice to minimise any risk of civilian casualties,” and “our aircraft bombed at night to further mitigate any such risks,” the statement continued.
Huw Merriman, a government minister, told Sky News that if the Houthis keep attacking ships in the Red Sea, the airstrikes “would not just be a one-off.”
The strikes, according to UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps, were a “self defence” response to the Houthis’ “intolerable attacks” on merchant shipping.
“This action, which aims to weaken Houthi capabilities, will further damage their meager supplies and their capacity to jeopardize international trade,” he posted on X.
It is understood that Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the speaker of the UK Commons, and Sir Keir Starmer, the leader of the opposition, were not informed beforehand about the new strikes.
Houthi-run Al Masirah TV carried reports of strikes in the provinces of Taiz, Bayda, and Sanaa, Yemen, including the air base near the capital, Sanaa, known as al-Dailami.
The Houthis have not wavered ten days after the US and UK’s first precisely timed combined air and missile strike.
They have persisted in firing a range of projectiles at vessels that pass Yemen’s coastline, once inadvertently hitting a Russian oil ship.
After launching several preemptive strikes on Houthi launch sites, US-led forces have now struck new targets under the newly designated Operation Poseidon Archer.
The Pentagon claims that these destroyed missiles as they were being readied for launch. According to recent estimates by Western intelligence, at least thirty percent of the Houthi missile stock had been destroyed or deteriorated.
However, it is evident that the Houthis, who receive supplies, training, and advice from Iran, are determined to carry out their attacks on ships they believe to be connected to Israel, the US, or the UK.
Due to their harsh rule, many Yemenis have been miffed, which has made them very popular at home.
A large number of people in the Arab world at large also support them, as the Houthis claim to be backing Hamas as part of the “Axis of Resistance” against Israel, which is backed by Iran.
It follows earlier on Monday speech by UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and US President Joe Biden.
The White House said that Mr. Biden and Mr. Sunak “discussed ongoing Iranian-backed Houthi attacks against merchant and naval vessels transiting the Red Sea” in an official readout of their phone conversation.
The White House stated that they reaffirmed “their commitment to international commerce, freedom of navigation, and defending mariners from illegal and unjustifiable attacks.”
The statement continued, “The president and prime minister discussed the importance of securing the release of Hamas hostages and increasing humanitarian aid and civilian protections for people in Gaza.”
In November, the Houthis launched their first assault on merchant ships, claiming they were retaliating against Israel’s military operation in Gaza.
Since then, the gang has attacked numerous commercial tankers traveling through the Red Sea, one of the busiest shipping channels in the world.
On January 11, the US and the UK retaliated by attacking numerous Houthi targets with a barrage of airstrikes.
These attacks, which were also backed by Bahrain, the Netherlands, Canada, Australia, and Houthi forces, started when they disregarded a demand to stop their attacks in the area.
