US targets Houthi sites in Yemen, intends further strikes in Iraq and Syria

Middle East, News, US February 5, 2024 , by IRIA No Comments

The United States and the United Kingdom carried out attacks on Houthi-controlled positions in Yemen in a new wave of strikes. The U.S. also announced that it intends to target Iran-backed groups in the Middle East as a follow-up to its initial wave of attacks that targeted 85 sites in Iraq and Syria.

The ongoing crisis in the Middle East is now entering a new phase as the U.S. forces are intensifying attacks on allegedly Iranian-backed military groups in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen.

“We intend to take additional strikes, and additional action, to continue to send a clear message that the United States will respond when our forces are attacked when our people are killed,” White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said during a televised interview as he unveiled Washington’s intentions to increase attacks on Iranian-backed groups in the Middle East.

Sullivan played down the question of whether the United States would attack any sites inside Iranian territories, something the U.S. military has been very careful to avoid. “I would not describe it as some open-ended military campaign,” he said.

F/A-18E Super Hornets fly near USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) Carrier Strike Group — ^{Two F/A-18E Super Hornets and a Hawker Hunter aircraft (center) fly near the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) during Carrier Strike Group (CSG) Two, Dwight D. Eisenhower CSG’s Composite Training Unit Exercise. (Image Credit: U.S. Navy)}

Iran, despite backing several military groups in the Middle East, has so far avoided any direct role in the conflict. The Pentagon has said it does not want war with Iran and does not believe Tehran wants war either.

Earlier this week, The United States military unilaterally conducted a wave of airstrikes in Iraq and Syria targeting more than 85 different locations on February 2, 2024. The airstrikes, denounced by Iraq and Syria, were claimed to be conducted against Iranian-linked militant groups in the region responsible for attacking the U.S. military base in Jordan and killing three U.S. servicemen.

Iraqi government sources reported at least 16 deaths, including several civilians, as a result of the U.S. airstrikes, while Syria reported 23 deaths.

Strikes in Yemen

In a separate operation on February 4, 2024, the United States and Britain conducted strikes on 36 Houthi targets in Yemen. The wave of attacks in Yemen comes only a day after U.S. military action against Tehran-backed groups in Iraq and Syria. This retaliation was also prompted by a lethal attack on U.S. troops in Jordan.

The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that it hit a Houthi anti-ship missile that was “prepared to launch against ships in the Red Sea”. Houthi attacks on Israel-linked ships in the narrow strait of Bab al-Mandeb in the Red Sea have disrupted global trade, drawing in the U.S. and the UK response.

*^{Fighter jets flying from the aircraft carrier of the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations supporting maritime security and stability in the Red Sea. (Image Credit: Twitter/@TheCVN69)}*

The CENTCOM added that it launched “proportionate” attacks with “support” from Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. Thirty-six targets were hit “across 13 locations around midnight Saturday”, the U.S., the UK, and supporting countries said in a joint statement.

The U.S. Central Command statement highlighted that the “Iranian-backed Houthi targets included multiple underground storage facilities, command and control, missile systems, UAV storage and operations sites, radars, and helicopters.”

“These strikes are intended to degrade Houthi capabilities used to continue their reckless and unlawful attacks on U.S. and UK ships as well as international commercial shipping in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb Strait, and the Gulf of Aden,” the joint statement added.

The Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said the strikes “will not pass without a response and consequences”. Another Houthi spokesperson, Mohammed Abdulsalam, indicated the group would not be deterred, saying Yemen’s decision to support Gaza would not be affected by any attack.