DOHA, September 14. /TASS/. More than 700 US strikes on Houthi sites failed to deter the rebels from attacks on ships in the Red Sea, said Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, the group’s leader.
"More than 700 airstrikes and strikes from the sea have not helped the US to limit, contain or stop our military operations at sea," he said on the rebel-controlled Al Masirah television channel.
He said the strike on a school in the village of al-Janadiya in the Taiz province killed two girls and wounded 18 others.
According to al-Houthi, at least 24 strikes were carried out last week on the provinces of al-Hodeidah, Ibb, Marib, Saada and Taiz. The Houthis were able to shoot down two American MQ-9 Reaper drones, he said.
On September 10, Al Masirah television reported a strike by coalition forces on a school in the village of al-Janadiya about 20 kilometers northeast of the administrative center of the Taiz province. According to the report, the attack killed two people and injured five others. The Houthi-controlled Saba news agency reported that female students at a Yemeni school were killed and injured in the shelling.
Following the escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in the Gaza Strip, the group, also known as the Houthis, said they would strike Israeli territory and prevent ships affiliated with that country from passing through the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait until the operation in the Palestinian enclave ended. The Houthis have attacked dozens of civilian ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since mid-November.
In response to these attacks, the US and UK announced preparations for Operation Prosperity Guardian to ensure freedom of navigation in the Red Sea. Afterward, the UK and US started carrying out regular strikes on Houthi military sites in various Yemeni provinces.