US and UK start strikes against Houthis in Yemen who have ties to Iran in order to halt missile and drone assaults in the Red Sea

US and UK start strikes against Houthis in Yemen who have ties to Iran in order to halt missile and drone assaults in the Red Sea

On the second day of action, the US and UK hit 36 Houthi sites in Yemen that are associated with Iran.

A Tomahawk land attack missile (TLAM) was fired on February 3, 2024, against what the US military claims to be a Houthi military target in Yemen from the US Navy's Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Gravely. Reuters via US Central Command/Handout.

On the second day of a wider US assault against organizations with ties to Iran, the US and Britain conducted attacks on 36 Houthi sites in Yemen in retaliation for the recent attack on US personnel.

The strikes particularly targeted missile systems, launchers, and hidden weapons storage sites that the Houthis have used for assaults on ships in the Red Sea, according to Reuters.

The Pentagon also said that 13 distinct facilities throughout the nation were the target of the assaults.

Lloyd Austin, the US Defense Secretary, stated, "This collective action sends a clear message to the Houthis because they will face further consequences if they do not end their illegal operations on international shipping and naval vessels."

The Middle East conflict has been more tense recently, as seen by airstrikes in Yemen. On October 7, a militant Palestinian organization attacked Israel, sparking the start of the war between Israel and Hamas.

Furthermore, these strikes in Yemen are taking place concurrently with an ongoing US military action in retaliation to the deaths of three US troops in a drone strike on a Jordanian checkpoint by terrorists supported by Iran.

The United States initiated the first phase of its counterattack earlier on Friday, carrying out attacks in Syria and Iraq on around 85 sites connected to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and militias that it supports. About forty casualties were recorded as a consequence.

The US claims that militias supported by Iran are aiming to attack US forces in Jordan, Syria, and Iraq. Furthermore, the Iranian-affiliated Houthi rebels in Yemen are still attacking Red Sea military and commercial ships.

The Houthis, who control large swaths of Yemen, claim that there was a wave of support for Palestinians during Israel's assaults on Gaza at the same time as their strikes. The US and its allies, on the other hand, characterize these acts as indiscriminate and a danger to international commerce.

Major shipping companies have abandoned this crucial commercial route in favor of lengthier trips across Africa due to the rising unrest in the Red Sea. This move has resulted in higher costs, global inflation worries, and the loss of much-needed foreign currency that Egypt received from shipping via the Red Sea or the Suez Canal.

The US has launched over a dozen strikes on Houthi sites in recent weeks, but the group's assaults have not been significantly halted by these measures. The US Central Command released comments detailing more, albeit more restricted, assaults not long before the most recent extensive round of air and sea attacks.