US, UK launch fresh strikes on Yemen
American and British forces on Saturday carried out a fresh wave of strikes on Yemen, including the capital Sana’a.
A joint statement by the US-led coalition forces in the Red Sea claimed the strikes targeted 18 Ansarallah movement’s targets across eight locations in Yemen including weapons storage facilities, attack drones, air defense systems, radars and a helicopter, according to AFP.
It was co-signed by Australia, Bahrain, Denmark, Canada, the Netherlands and New Zealand, who gave unspecified “support” to the new round of strikes, the second this month and fourth since Yemen began their attacks on Israel-bound ships in the Red Sea in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Yemen’s Armed Forces’ spokesman Yahya Saree was defiant, vowing in a social media statement that the Ansarallah movement would “confront the American-British escalation with more qualitative military operations against all hostile targets in the Red and Arab Seas.”
Saturday’s operation comes after several vessels were struck this week in the region, including the fertilizer-filled Rubymar, whose crew had to abandon ship after it was hit several days ago and began taking on water.
British maritime security agency UKMTO reported another attack on an unspecified ship near the port of Djibouti on Saturday night, saying there had been an “explosion in close proximity to the vessel, no damage is reported to the vessel and there are no injuries to the crew.”
Iran condemned on Sunday the latest strikes by the US and Britain on Yemen, saying they were seeking to “escalate tensions and crises” in the region.
“With such attacks, America and Britain seek to escalate tensions and crises in the region, and expand the scope of war and instability,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said in a statement.
“Certainly, this kind of arbitrary and aggressive military operation, aside from aggravating insecurity and instability in the region, will not achieve anything for these aggressor countries,” Kanaani added.
He further condemned the US and Britain for failing to “take immediate and effective action” to stop Israel’s deadly campaign in Gaza.
Gaza situation
Yemen say their attacks on shipping around the Red Sea are in support of Palestinians in war-ravaged Gaza. Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has claimed the lives of more than 29,690 people so far. Israel’s onslaught has also wounded 69,879 people since October 7.
People in the besieged territory are also facing starvation as Israel has continued relentless bombardment and blocked delivery of much-needed humanitarian aid.
Dire food shortages sent hundreds of Palestinians fleeing northern Gaza on Sunday.
Desperate families in the north of the besieged war zone have been forced to scavenge for food as fighting have stopped humanitarian aid trucks from reaching the devastated area.
Hundreds fled northern Gaza Sunday and headed south whichever way they could, walking down garbage-strewn roads between the blackened shells of bombed-out buildings.