MOSCOW, January 12. /TASS/. The strike by US forces on Yemeni territory showed utter disdain for international laws and was intended only to escalate the situation in the region, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova wrote on her Telegram channel.

"The US strikes on Yemen are yet another manifestation of how the Anglo-Saxons distort SC (United Nations Security Council - TASS) resolutions and show utter disdain for international laws in order to escalate the situation in the region in pursuit of their destructive agenda," she said.

Last night, the armed forces of the United States and the United Kingdom delivered air strikes on rebel-held positions in several Yemeni cities, using aircraft, warships and submarines. US President Joe Biden said the military action was ordered in response to "unprecedented Houthi attacks" on shipping in the Red Sea and that the strikes were delivered in self-defense. The US Defense Department’s Central Command (CENTCOM) said it has so far struck more than 60 targets at 16 Houthi facilities.

After the escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis warned that they would launch strikes on Israeli territory while barring ships associated with the Jewish state from passing through the waters of the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait until Tel Aviv ceased its military operation against Palestinian radical group Hamas in the embattled enclave. According to CENTCOM estimates, the Yemeni rebel group has attacked more than 20 vessels and civilian ships in the Red Sea since mid-November.