Houtis of Yemen said it retaliated after vowing to “meet escalation and escalation” following the US air attack on the group that killed at least 31 people on Saturday.
Houthi Army spokesman Yahya Saree said on Sunday that the group targeted US aircraft Harry S Truman and its warships with 18 ballistics and cruise missiles and drones. The US has not yet responded to Houthis’ claims.
Surrey added that the US has launched more than 47 attacks in various parts of Yemen.
Previously, the Politburo Houthi said that fatal strikes constituted “war crimes.”
Anis Al-Asbahi, a spokesman for the Houthi Health Ministry, said Saturday’s attacks targeted the capital, Sanaa and the areas of Saada, Al Bayda and Radaa, killing at least 31 people and injuring 101 people, “most of which were children and women.”
But after ordering the first attack, President Donald Trump said he would use “overwhelming deadly force” until he ceased to attack shipments along key maritime corridors in the Red Sea.
Houthis, which launched an attack on shipping containers in response to Israel’s Gaza War in 2023 and Palestinian defense, repeated on Sunday with another comment that “naval operations will continue until Gaza’s blockade is lifted and aid is in place.”
Houthis halted the attack when the Gaza ceasefire came into effect in January and had not launched it for two months.
Earlier in March, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that the intrusion of aid delivery to Gaza has been suspended to pressure Hamas to accept an extension of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement instead of moving to the next phase.
On Tuesday, Houthis announced it would resume the attack after a deadline to allow Israel to resume delivery of aid to Gaza.
On Sunday morning, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegses said he would be on a “relentless” strike against Hausis until Washington stopped targeting US assets and global shipping.
Talking to Fox News, Hegseth said the campaign was a response to the numerous attacks Houthis launched on its ships since November 2023, serving as a warning to Iran to stop supporting the group.
“This will continue until you say it.” We have finished filming on the boat. We’ve finished filming on the property,” Heggs said.
The US and several of its allies bombed Yemen with cruise missiles several times since January 2024 as Israeli war in Gaza became furious and the Houtis continued its sustained maritime campaign.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio also announced that the US military movement will continue until the group is unable to attack the ship. He accused Iran of supporting the Houtis.
US national security adviser Michael Waltz told ABC the strike “actually targeted multiple Houthi leaders and took them out.”
There was no confirmation from Houthis about Waltz’s comments.
“Missing”
Former US diplomat Nabir Cooley told Al Jazeera that Trump’s decision to launch an attack on the Housis was “misplaced.”
Houthis, which has been “badly bombed across the territory” in the past, is unlikely to be curbed through “a few weeks of bombing,” Khoury said, adding that attacks on shipping containers can be resolved through diplomacy.
Just as Trump warned Iran to stop supporting the Housis and vowed Tehran to be “fully accountable” for the group’s actions, General Hossein Salami, head of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard (IRGC), denied his country’s involvement in the attack on Hausis.
According to state television, Salami said on Sunday that Iran “does not play a role” in setting national or operational policies for a group that is aligned across the region.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragut also urged the US to halt the strike in the X post, saying Washington cannot determine Iran’s foreign policy.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on Yemen on Sunday to “maximum control and suspend all military activities,” his spokesman said.
“Additional escalations could exacerbate regional tensions, retaliatory fuel cycles that could further destabilise Yemen and the region, pose a significant risk to the already dire humanitarian situation in the country.”