US-UK massive attack targeting Houthis in Yemen

International Desk: The United States and the United Kingdom have launched airstrikes targeting Houthi rebels in Yemen. The heads of government of the two countries have confirmed the news of the attack in Yemen. BBC news.

US President Joe Biden said the attack was carried out in response to Iran-backed Houthi attacks targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea since last November. The Houthis' deputy foreign minister warned the United States and the United Kingdom that they would "pay a heavy price" for this "brutal aggression".

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Royal Air Force fighter jets had helped carry out "specifically targeted strikes" on military installations. He added that the attack was a "limited, necessary and proportionate measure of self-defence". Biden said the Netherlands, Australia, Canada and Bahrain have supported the mission.

Attacks were reported on Yemen's capital Sanaa, the Houthi-controlled Red Sea port of Hudaydah, Dhamar and Saada, a Houthi stronghold in the northwest. The Houthis control much of Yemen and say they are helping allied group Hamas by attacking ships bound for Israel. U.S. officials say warships have fired cruise missiles and U.S. jets have struck more than 12 locations, including the capital Sanaa, Hudaydah and the Houthi Red Sea stronghold ports.

Four US RAF Typhoon jets took off from the Akrotiri air base in Cyprus and attacked two Houthi targets. President Biden has warned that more steps are likely to be taken if necessary to ensure free trade. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin released a statement saying the joint military action was taken to "disrupt and degrade the capabilities of the Houthis".

The move targeted the Houthis' unmanned aerial vehicles, unmanned ships, land-attack cruise missiles, coastal radars and air defense capabilities. A US Defense Department official said the Pentagon chief monitored the operation in real time from the hospital. He is hospitalized due to bladder cancer surgery. The official said Austin was "actively involved" and had spoken with the president at least twice in the past 72 hours about the operation.

Austin has been under pressure from the White House this week for failing to notify her of receiving treatment at the hospital and the NICU's intensive care unit. United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also released a statement along with US President Joe Biden. It said the country's Royal Air Force had taken part in strikes "on facilities used by Yemen's Houthi rebels". "The UK will always stand for freedom of movement and the free flow of trade," he said.

That is why we, along with the United States, have taken limited, necessary and appropriate measures in self-defense. The Netherlands, Canada and Bahrain have provided assistance on targets related to the attack, although they did not participate in the operation. The attack is aimed at securing global shipping by reducing the Houthis' military capabilities.