Iran-backed Houthi militia claims fourth attack against US warships
Yemen’s Houthi militia claimed on Wednesday to have carried out a fourth attack in 72 hours on an American fleet in the Red Sea, as the US military said its campaign against the Iran-backed armed group was ongoing.
The Houthis’ military spokesperson said cruise missiles and drones targeted the USS Harry S. Truman carrier group in an attack that was “the fourth within 72 hours.”
An hour earlier, the US Central Command confirmed its “continuous operations against Iran-backed Houthi terrorists.”
The United States launched heavy strikes against the Tehran-sponsored group beginning Saturday, prompting mass protests in the war-torn country and retaliatory efforts that a US general said were widely missing their mark.
Washington has pledged to hit Yemen with lethal and overwhelming force until the Houthi armed group stops firing on the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. The trade route typically handles around 12 percent of global shipping traffic.
Part of Iran’s “axis of resistance” against the United States and Israel, the Houthis have been hampering the trade lane since the start of the Gaza war, claiming solidarity with Palestinians.
The Houthis said the US bombardment would not stop their support for Gaza.
“The US aggression will not deter the steadfast and struggling Yemen from fulfilling its religious, moral, and humanitarian duties toward the Palestinian people,” the Houthis said in a statement Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the Hamas-allied group also took responsibility for a missile intercepted by Israel and vowed to escalate attacks after the resumption of massive military operations in the Gaza Strip.
Tuesday’s missile, which the Houthis said targeted an air base, was the first reported attack on Israel from Yemen since the January 19 ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.
Israel said it intercepted a missile launched from Yemen after air raid sirens sounded in Beersheba and parts of the Negev Desert.
A military statement later said that “a missile launched from Yemen was intercepted by the IAF (air force) prior to crossing into Israeli territory.”
The Houthis’ supreme political council condemned “the Zionist enemy’s resumption of aggression against the Gaza Strip.”
The wave of Israeli strikes in Gaza, by far the deadliest since the truce took effect, killed more than 400 people, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
The massive overnight operation threatened to resume the devastating war, with Israel’s prime minister deeming it “essential” to ensure the release of hostages in Gaza.
Hamas accused the Israeli government of effectively signing a death warrant for the remaining captives.
