BRITAIN last night joined the US in attacking Yemen’s Houthis in a third wave of attacks against the Iran-backed rebels.
The Pentagon said 36 targets in Yemen were hit on Saturday night – hours after Iraq warned the Middle East was “on the brink” as tensions boiled over.
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Footage shows explosions lighting up Yemen’s night sky during airstrikes
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Houthi targets were in 13 different locations
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RAF Typhoon takes off on Saturday to carry out strikes on Houthi targets Credit: UK MOD Crown copyright
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RAF Typhoon FGR4 aircraft preparing for take-off last night Credit: UK MOD Crown copyright
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A Tomahawk land attack missile was launched from the USS GravelyCredit: Reuters
The Houthi targets were in 13 different locations, US officials said.
Royal Air Force Typhoon FGR4s have been deployed, supported by Voyager tankers and US forces, the Ministry of Defense confirmed.
Foreign Secretary David Cameron has vowed to hold Iran responsible for attacks by Tehran’s proxies – and said Britain would use all means at its disposal to “put out the fire”.
He told The Sunday Times: “There are a lot of fires burning in the world and our job is to use diplomacy and all the tools we have to try to put those fires out and try to protect Britain from those fires.”
The Ministry of Defense said the Typhoons used Paveway IV precision-guided bombs against multiple military targets “identified by careful intelligence analysis at three locations”.
Officials said the attacks were “very carefully planned to ensure minimal risk of civilian casualties”.
A ground control station – used to guide drones from deeper inland operating over the sea – at As Salif, on the Red Sea coast, was targeted by the jets.
The Ministry of Defense said a “significant number” of targets were also hit in Bani.
US F/A-18 fighter jets from the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and US warships firing Tomahawk missiles from the Red Sea also engaged the targets.
According to officials, the USS Gravely and the USS Carney, both Navy destroyers, launched the missiles.
British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps insisted that Britain and the US had acted in “self-defence” and that the latest round of strikes was “not an escalation”.
He said the third wave of strikes was “proportionate and targeted”.
“We have already successfully targeted launchers and warehouses involved in Houthi attacks, and I am confident that our latest strikes have further degraded Houthi capabilities,” Shapps said.
He called repeated attacks on commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea “illegal and unacceptable”.
The defense minister added: “We acted alongside our American allies, with the support of many international partners, in self-defense and in accordance with international law.”
Earlier unconfirmed reports claimed that troops targeted Al-Lahiya and Al-Durayhimi districts on Saturday night.
Saturday’s strikes marked the third time the US and Britain have conducted a major, joint operation to target Houthi weapons launchers, radar sites, drones and buried weapons facilities.
A statement from US Central Command said the joint operation was launched “at the direction of their respective governments, the US and UK militaries, with the support of Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands and New Zealand”.
“These precision strikes are aimed at disrupting and degrading the capabilities the Houthis use to threaten global trade and the lives of innocent seafarers, and are in response to a series of illegal, dangerous and destabilizing Houthi actions,” it added.
In a new warning to the Houthis, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III promised “further consequences” for the Iran-backed rebels.
He said: “This collective action sends a clear message to the Houthis that they will continue to suffer further consequences if they do not end their illegal attacks on international ships and naval vessels.
“We will not hesitate to defend lives and the free flow of commerce in one of the world’s most critical waterways.”
Earlier on Saturday, the US hit and destroyed six Houthi anti-ship cruise missiles in Yemen.
The targets posed an “imminent threat” to US ships in the Red Sea, according to US Central Command (CENTCOM).
American forces carried out “self-defense” attacks around 7:20 p.m. Sana’a time.
CENTCOM said, “This action will protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer for the US Navy and merchant vessels.”
America previously hit targets in Syria and Iraq on Friday.
It was Biden’s first act of revenge after three US soldiers were killed by a drone.
Officials said the US missile strikes hit more than 85 targets, including “command and control headquarters” and ammunition depots.
US Central Command said it targeted the Quds Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and affiliated militias.
Syrian media reports that cities in the east of the country were hit.
Iraq said 16 people, including civilians, were killed and 25 wounded.
Iraqi media reported the strikes in Anbar province, western Iraq, a large area bordering Syria and Jordan.
Iran itself was not attacked.
US President Joe Biden said on Friday: “Let all those who seek to harm us know this: If you harm an American, we will respond.”
US Central Command said more than 125 munitions were used in the strikes, delivered by numerous aircraft, including long-range bombers.
American soldiers killed
It came hours after the president joined grieving families to see the remains of three Army reservists brought home.
They were killed in an attack on the Tower 22 base in Jordan last Sunday.
They were Sergeant William Rivers, 46, Specialist Kennedy Sanders, 24, and Specialist Breonna Moffett, 23.
More than 40 soldiers and soldiers were also injured. The outpost was hit by an Iranian-made drone operated from Iraq, just six miles away.
The Islamic Resistance, an umbrella group for Iranian-backed militias in the region, claimed responsibility.
It is said to be in response to US support for Israel.
Official sources earlier this week revealed plans for retaliatory strikes and said they would include an attack on Iran’s population and facilities.
On Friday, ahead of the expected attack, the US warned Iraq.
The White House said: “We notified the Iraqi government before the attack.”
But the Iraqi military condemned attacks on militant locations inside the country as a violation of the country’s freedoms and rights.
The scheme was leaked as US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin condemned recent barrages of drone and missile attacks by Iranian-backed militias against US forces in the Middle East.
He said Thursday: “The president will not tolerate attacks on American troops, and neither will I. Our teammates were killed by Iranian-backed radical militants operating in Syria and Iraq.”
Mr Austin added that Iran-backed rebels had “tried to create more unrest” since the Hamas terror group unleashed its terror on Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people and taking 240 hostages.
He stated: “This is a dangerous moment in the Middle East.
“We will take whatever action is necessary to defend the United States, our interests, and our people.
“We will respond when we choose, where we choose and how we choose. That’s what everyone here is focused on.”
Iran is a key backer of Hamas and many other terrorist groups across the Middle East, including the Houthi rebels in Yemen, who are behind recent attacks on ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Last month, US forces destroyed anti-ship missiles from the rebels for the same reasons last month.
Also in January, the US and the UK carried out airstrikes on rebel bases.
Who are the Houthis?
Houthi rebels are terrorizing vessels and warships in the Red Sea – but who are they?
The Shiite militant group, which now controls most of Yemen, has spent more than a decade largely ignored by the world.
However, since the outbreak of the war between Israel and Gaza, they have gone from relative obscurity to become hostage to roughly £1 trillion of global trade – turning one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes into an active war zone.
Their distorted slogan is “Death to America, death to Israel, curse to the Jews and victory to Islam”.
Why do they attack ships?
The rebel group has been launching relentless drone and missile attacks on all ships – including warships – believed to be linked to Israel in a show of solidarity with its ally Hamas.
Attacks from the sea have threatened to ignite a full-scale war in the Middle East as ripples from Israel’s war in Gaza are felt across the region – with Iran suspected of fomenting the chaos.
However, attacks on merchant ships with little or no connection to Israel are frequent – forcing global shipping to halt operations in the region and sending shipping prices soaring.
Houthi attacks in the Red Sea increased by 50 percent between November and December.
Leaders of the rebel group have previously vowed that attacks will continue until Israel halts its devastating offensive inside Gaza – despite recent US and UK strikes on their military strongholds.
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The fighter jet was launched from the US Navy aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. EisenhowerCredit: Reuters
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RAF weapons technicians prepare RAF Typhoon FRG4s on Saturday ahead of joint strikes with the US Credit: UK MOD Crown copyright
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RAF Typhoon aircraft take off on Saturday night to carry out further strikes on Houthi targets alongside the US. Credits: UK MOD Crown copyright
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Light shining over Yemen’s horizon after US strikes on Houthi targets on Saturday nightCredit: EPA
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RAF weapons technicians prepare an RAF Typhoon FRG4 aircraft on SaturdayCredit: UK MOD Crown copyright
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An RAF Typhoon FGR4 aircraft prepares to take off in a joint UK-US operation Credit: UK MOD Crown copyright
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The Pentagon confirmed that they hit 36 Houthi targets Credit: Alamy
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President Biden ordered the strikes on Saturday after three US soldiers were killed, warning that if an American was hurt we would ‘respond’ Credit: Rex
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Three US soldiers killed: Sergeant William Rivers, 46, Specialist Kennedy Sanders, 24, and Specialist Breonna Moffett, 23
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