DUBAI, February 23. /TASS/. The United Kingdom and United States forces have carried out 278 strikes in Yemen since January 12, leader of the Yemeni rebel movement Ansar Allah, Abdel Malek al-Houthi said.
"The number of airstrikes carried out by the US and UK, as well as rocket attacks from the sea, has reached 278," the Ansar Allah leader said in an address to his supporters broadcast by the Houthi-owned Al Masirah TV channel. According to al-Houthi, the strikes by Washington and London only resulted in "strengthening the military potential" of the movement.
Following the escalation of the conflict in the Gaza Strip, Ansar Allah said it would carry out attacks on Israeli territory and would not allow associated vessels to pass through the waters of the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait until the operation in the Palestinian enclave ceased. Since mid-November last year, the Houthis have attacked dozens of civilian ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
On January 12, the UK and US armed forces, launched their first strikes against Ansar Allah targets using aircraft, ships and submarines. The targets were the locations of missiles and drones, as well as rebel radar stations of the insurgents in a number of Yemeni cities, including Sanaa and Al-Hodeidah.