US delivers major strike on Iran-backed Houthi weapons

The United States launched strikes on five Houthi key weapons storage facilities in Yemen on Wednesday, as part of ongoing efforts to weaken the Iran-backed group amid its maritime blockade of the Red Sea.

The blockade in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden region has seen dozens of seamen taken hostage, four deaths and two ships sunk amid nearly 100 attacks since November 2023.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement: "US forces targeted several of the Houthis' underground facilities housing various weapons components of types that the Houthis have used to target civilian and military vessels throughout the region.”

The US is leading a more than 20-nation coalition to combat the blockade, with several operations being carried out alongside the UK.

“CENTCOM forces targeted the Houthi's hardened underground facilities housing missiles, weapons components, and other munitions used to target military and civilian vessels throughout the region,” a statement from CENTCOM said.

Iran has armed, funded and trained the militia for over a decade, allowing it to take over large swathes of Yemen in a civil war which has turned the country into the region's poorest suffering a critical humanitarian crisis.

A Saudi-led coalition has been fighting the group in a war which has left millions displaced and tens of thousands killed.

Earlier this month, the US carried out 15 strikes against Houthi targets amid the maritime blockade which was instigated by Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, in allegiance with Iran-backed Hamas in Gaza, at war with Israel.

It has since disrupted global shipping, sending global commodity prices soaring as vessels detour on longer, more time-consuming routes. Along with the Houthis, Iran’s proxies in Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq have joined the fight against Israel since Hamas invaded Israel on October 7 last year, sparking a region-wide conflict.

US CENTCOM said US Air Force and US Navy assets, including US Air Force B-2 Spirit long-range stealth bombers, were part of Wednesday’s operation.

“The employment of the B-2 bomber demonstrates US global strike capabilities to reach these targets, when necessary, anytime, anywhere,” said a statement. “Our battle damage assessments are underway and do not indicate civilian casualties.”

The US strike, coming as Israeli retaliation against Iran looms, may serve as a message to Tehran, signaling Washington's readiness to take military action based on its assessment of regional security needs.

Israel has also conducted multiple strikes on Houthi facilities in Yemen since October 7 as it continues to defend itself against missile and drone attacks Iran’s proxies.

On the one-year anniversary of the Hamas attack which led to the death of at least 1,100 mostly civilians and saw 251 hostages taken to Gaza, the Houthis launched a surface-to-surface missile towards Tel Aviv, intercepted by Israel’s air defenses.