SANAA - The United States launched air raids across Yemen overnight, kill-ing at least one person and injuring 13 in the capital, Sanaa, media reports say.
The strike on Monday was the latest in Washington’s renewed military offensive against the Houthis, which started earlier this month when the Iran-aligned group said they planned to resume attacks on Red Sea shipping due to Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip. “A citizen was killed and 13 others were injured, including three children, in the final toll of the US aggression on a residential building in [Sanaa’s] Aser area,” said the Houthi-run Health Ministry spokesperson, Anees Alasbahi, in a statement.
Footage released by the Houthis showed the rubble of a collapsed building and pools of blood staining the ground. The Houthis also reported air raids on sites around the city of Saada, the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah, and Marib province, home to oil and gas fields under the control of allies to Yemen’s exiled central government. Several social media accounts on Monday made unverified claims that the Houthis had attacked US naval vessels.
The US launched its campaign of aerial bombardment against the Yemeni group on March 15, citing its targeting last year of vessels in key shipping routes in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, and pledging their support for Hamas during the war with Israel. The Houthis paused their attacks as a ceasefire was enacted in the enclave in January. However, as the truce fell apart, the Yemeni group threatened to resume its campaign. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz said last Sunday that the Houthi threat is forcing 75 percent of US-flagged shipping to take the far-longer route around the southern coast of Africa rather than going through the Suez Canal.
The Houthis have also claimed attacks targeting Israel in recent days. The Israeli military claimed on Sunday to have successfully intercepted a ballistic missile fired by the group. US air raids have killed at least 79 people and injured more than 100 in Yemen since last Thursday, according to the Houthis. (Al Jazeera/AP)