NEW YORK, February 10. /TASS/. The US military has carried out a series of strikes in Yemen on February 9, targeting unmanned surface vehicles and cruise missiles of Houthi rebels from the Ansar Allah movement, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said.
"On Feb. 9, between the hours of 3 a.m. - 9:40 p.m. (Sanaa time), US Central Command (CENTCOM) forces conducted self-defense strikes against two mobile unmanned surface vessels (USV), four mobile anti-ship cruise missiles, and one mobile land attack cruise missile (LACM) that were prepared to launch against ships in the Red Sea," CENTCOM said in a statement posted on its X page.
It was reported that the US Central Command had identified the targets in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen. CENTCOM decided that they "presented an imminent threat to US Navy ships and merchant vessels in the region." It said that "these actions will protect freedom of navigation."
Following the escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the Gaza Strip, the Ansar Allah movement warned that they would carry out strikes on Israeli territory and would bar any ships associated with the Jewish state from sailing across the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait until the operation in the Palestinian enclave ended. Since mid-November 2023, the Houthis have attacked dozens of civilian ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. In response, the United States, alongside its allies, launched Operation Prosperity Guardian to ensure freedom of navigation and protection of vessels.