Houthi strikes: US and UK hit more than a dozen Yemen targets in retaliation for Red Sea attacks

The strikes have support from a wider coalition of countries including Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands and New Zealand.

In a statement, the US, UK and other allies said the “necessary and proportionate strikes specifically targeted 18 Houthi targets across eight locations in Yemen” that also included underground storage facilities, radar and a helicopter.

Both prime minister Rishi Sunak and president Joe Biden have repeatedly said that attacks on the key global shipping route will not be tolerated.

Issuing a statement on the strikes against the Houthis, defence secretary Grant Shapps said: “It is our duty to protect lives at sea and preserve freedom of navigation.

“That is why the Royal Air Force engages in a fourth round of precision strikes against Houthi military targets in Yemen.”

Mr Shapps said it came after “severe Houthi attacks against commercial ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, including against the British-owned MV Islander and the MV Rubymar, which forced the crew to abandon ship”.

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis targeted MV Torm Thor, a U.S.-flagged, owned, and operated oil tanker, in the Gulf of Aden, the group’s military spokesman Yahya Sarea said in a televised speech.

The Houthis say they have been attacking shipping lanes in solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza War. It comes after the US and UK launched airstrikes on 18 Houthi targets across Yemen.

The UK and US have launched another round of missile strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen after a surge in attacks around the Red Sea by the Iran-backed group.

American and British fighter jets hit sites in eight locations, according to US officials.

The action was intended to degrade Houthi capabilities used to “threaten global trade, naval vessels and the lives of innocent mariners” along one of the world’s most critical waterways, a joint statement said.

Intelligence analysis had successfully identified several very long-range drones, used by the Houthis for both reconnaissance and attack missions, at one site several miles north east of Sanaa, the Ministry of Defence said.

Precision-guided bombs were used against the drones and their launchers, according to the MoD.

This is the fourth time that a joint operation has been launched against the rebel group since 12 January, though the action appears to have done little to deter Houthi attacks.

The US and Britain have struck more than a dozen Houthi targets in Yemen in response to a recent surge in attacks by the Iran-backed militia group on ships in the Red Sea.

American and British fighter jets hit about 18 sites across multiple locations, targeting missiles, launchers, rockets, drones and unmanned surface and underwater vehicles, according to US officials.

This is the fourth time that the US and British militaries have conducted a combined operation against the Houthis since 12 January.