The United States has launched a series of airstrikes against Iran-backed rebels in Yemen after US President Donald Trump warned that Tehran would be “fully accountable” for its actions.
The Houthi-run Health Ministry said the strikes had killed at least 31 people, including women and children, and wounded more than 100.
Here's what's behind the US actions:
– A threat to global shipping
Houthi rebels began attacking military and commercial vessels in one of the world's busiest shipping lanes shortly after the Gaza war between Hamas and Israel began in October 2023.
The Houthis said they were targeting Red Sea vessels with links to Israel or its allies the United States and Britain in solidarity with the Palestinians, but some vessels had little to do with the war.
Before a ceasefire in Gaza took effect in mid-January, the Houthis attacked more than 100 merchant ships with missiles and drones, sinking two vessels and killing four sailors.
Other missiles and drones were intercepted or failed to reach their targets, including Western military ones.
The attacks had paused during the ceasefire, but the Houthis said on Wednesday they would resume attacks against “any Israeli vessel” after Israel cut off all humanitarian aid to Gaza to put pressure on Hamas during talks to extend the truce.
The rebels said the warning also applied to the Gulf of Aden, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the Arabian Sea.
There have been no reports of Houthi attacks since then.
“These relentless attacks have cost the U.S. and global economies many BILLIONS of dollars, while putting innocent lives at risk,” Mr. Trump said Saturday, announcing the airstrikes in a social media post.
– Threat to the USA
During the previous Houthi campaign, US and other Western warships were repeatedly attacked, resulting in the most serious fighting the US Navy has seen since World War II.
The US under the Biden administration, as well as Israel and Britain, have previously struck Houthi-held areas in Yemen. But a US official said Saturday's operation was carried out solely by the US.
The USS Harry S Truman carrier strike group, which includes an aircraft carrier, three Navy destroyers and one cruiser, is in the Red Sea and was part of Saturday's mission. The cruise missile submarine USS Georgia is also operating in the region.
Mr Trump said the strikes were carried out to “protect American shipping, air and naval assets and restore freedom of navigation”.
The attention to the Houthis and their attacks has raised their profile as they face economic and other pressures at home amid a decade-long stalemate in Yemen that has torn apart the Arab world's poorest country.
– Pressure on Iran
Saturday's strikes were also aimed at putting pressure on Iran, which backs the Houthis just as it backs Hamas and other proxies in the Middle East.
Mr Trump vowed to hold Iran “fully accountable” for the Houthis' actions.
Earlier this month, the US State Department reinstated the Houthis' designation as a “foreign terrorist organization,” which carries sanctions and penalties for anyone providing “material support” to the group.
The Trump administration is also pressuring Iran to resume bilateral talks on its growing nuclear program, with Mr. Trump writing a letter to the country's supreme leader.
Mr Trump, who unilaterally pulled America out of Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, has said he will not allow the programme to proceed.
Mr Trump also imposed new sanctions on Iran as part of his “maximum pressure” campaign against the country and suggested military action remained a possibility, while stressing that he still believed a new nuclear deal was possible.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
