Houthis attack US aircraft carrier in Red Sea after deadly attacks in Yemen

Yemen’s Houthi rebels say they have launched a missile attack on a US aircraft carrier in the Red Sea in retaliation for recent deadly attacks by the US and Britain in Yemen, Al Jazeera reports.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sari announced the attack on the Eisenhower carrier on Friday, days after the group claimed US and UK strikes on Yemen’s Hodeidah province killed at least 16 people. It is the biggest death toll the group has publicly acknowledged from several rounds of attacks linked to alleged attacks on shipping.

The Houthi-controlled channel Al Masirah Television broadcast footage of wounded civilians being treated in Hodeidah, showing the aftermath of Thursday’s attacks. At least 42 people were reported wounded.

“The US-British aggression will not deter us from continuing our military operation in support of Palestine”, Houthi official Mohammed al-Bukhaiti said on X, warning that the rebels would “respond to escalation with escalation”.

According to Al Jazeera, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) reported that strikes on 13 Houthi targets resulted in the destruction of eight unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen and the Red Sea.

Meanwhile, the British Ministry of Defence said Royal Air Force Typhoon FGR4s carried out strikes on Hodeidah and Gulayfika. It described the targets as “buildings identified as housing drone ground control facilities and very long range drones as well as storage for surface-to-air weapons”.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak defended the military action, calling it a form of “self-defence in the face of the continuing threat posed by the Houthis”.

The Houthi movement, aligned with Iran, controls significant parts of Yemen after nearly a decade of conflict against a Western-backed and Saudi-led coalition. They have vocally supported the Palestinians during Israel’s ongoing conflict in Gaza, launching repeated drone and missile attacks on ships in the Red Sea, the Bab al-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden since November.

Iran condemned the US-UK attacks, calling them “a violation of Yemen’s sovereignty and territorial integrity… international laws and human rights”, Al Jazeera reported, citing Iranian state media.

“The aggressive American and British governments are responsible for the consequences of these crimes against the Yemeni people,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said.

The Houthis have carried out more than 50 attacks on shipping, resulting in casualties, seizures of vessels and disruptions to global trade routes, according to the U.S. Maritime Administration. The campaign has forced shipping firms to seek alternate routes, affecting about 12 percent of global trade that passes through the Red Sea.

Despite counter-strikes by the US and UK aimed at reducing the Houthis’ capabilities, the rebels have continued their attacks. In their latest actions, they targeted a Greek-owned bulk carrier and other ships in response to Israeli attacks on Gaza, Al Jazeera reports.