US Bombing On Yemen; Death Toll Raises To 53 (X image @MariamRobly)
Sanaa, Yemen: The death toll in US bombing on Yemen rose to 53, including five children. Washington attacked Sanaa over its support of Gaza, and attacks in Red Sea. US officials said they will keep hitting Yemen, until Houthis back down on its threat to resume attacks on Israel-linked ships in the Red Sea.
In the latest attack, US hit a hijacked ship in the Red Sea port of Hodeida and a government complex in the northern province of al-Jawf. At the same time, Houthis claimed a second missile and drone attack on the USS Harry Truman aircraft carrier in the Red Sea. Washington is yet to comment on the said attack.
Citing local authorities, Saba news agency of Yemen reported that US forces carried out several air strikes on a cancer facility being built in the city of Saada on Sunday, causing “widespread destruction”. The Ministry of Agriculture also condemned the targeting of a cotton shop in the Zabid district of the Hodeidah governorate. It said targeting of civilian infrastructure is aimed at doubling the human suffering in Yemen, as per the report.
US and UK started attacking Yemen on March 15 at midnight, after the militant group warned of restarting the Red Sea attacks on vessels having links with Israel. The attack from West were part of a new campaign to “take out” leaders of the Ansarallah resistance movement and “hold Iran accountable” for supporting them, a top White House official said on 16 March, as per media report.
Also Read: “Your Time Is Up”: Trump’s Warning To Houthis
Trump criticised President Joe Biden’s handling of the crisis, calling it “pathetically weak,” and asserted that his inaction had allowed the Houthis to intensify their attacks.
Trump emphasised that the Houthis had effectively “choked off” one of the world’s most crucial maritime routes, halting trade and undermining the principle of freedom of navigation.
Trump vowed that the United States would use “overwhelming lethal force” until its objectives were met. He declared that American warships, aircraft, and commercial vessels would not be deterred by terrorist threats and that the military was actively carrying out strikes against Houthi bases, leaders, and missile defence systems.
“To all Houthi terrorists, your time is up, and your attacks must stop, starting today,” Trump warned. “If they don’t, hell will rain down upon you like nothing you have ever seen before.”
“This was an overwhelming response that actually targeted multiple Houthi [Ansarallah] leaders and took them out,” Trump national security adviser Mike Waltz said on ABC’s This Week.
Yemen’s Health Ministry spokesperson said most of those killed were women and children. “Targeting civilians proves US weakness; this will not deter us from supporting Gaza but will instead escalate the situation to something even stronger and more severe,” said the Yemeni Supreme Political Council in a statement.
The Houthis were taken to be the one of the Axis of Resistance of Iran. While former President Joe Biden also bombed Yemen, current President Donald Trump is now “going after the Houthi leadership and holding Iran responsible”.
Trump warned Tehran to end military support for Ansarallah. He said if Iran threatened the United States, “America will hold you fully accountable, and we won’t be nice about it!”.
IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps) Commander-in-chief Major General Hossein Salami reiterated on Sunday that Iran does not dictate the policies of Ansarallah in Yemen.
Taking to social media, Nasruddin Amer, deputy head of the Ansarallah media office, said the airstrikes would not deter the Yemeni resistance movement. “Sanaa will remain Gaza’s shield and support and will not abandon it no matter the challenges”, he wrote.
Also Read: US, Israel In “Secret Talks” With African States To Take Forcefully Displaced Palestinians From Gaza
The attack marked the first western airstrikes to hit Yemen since the Gaza ceasefire deal took effect in January. The attack comes days after Trump added Ansarallah back to the list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO).
The Houthis rose to prominence after it started to attack commercial ships having links with Israel and were passing through Red Sea. The attacks caused crisis at the one of the busiest trade route, forcing shipping companies to take the Cape of Good Hope route through South Africa, which were time consuming and expensive. Houthis started the attack pledging solidarity with Gaza during Israel’s genocide on the Strip.
As vowed, the group halted attacks on the vessels after Hamas-Israel reached a ceasefire deal in Gaza. However, it warned Israel of continuing the attack if Tel Aviv is to violate the deal. After the ending of first phase of the deal, Israel refused to move forward to the second phase, and cut urgently needed humanitarian aid to the war-battered enclave. Houthis then gave four-days deadline for Israel to re-start the flow of aid to Gaza, before starting attacking the vessels.
Earlier this week, the Yemeni Armed Forces (YAF) announced the reinstatement of a ban on all Israeli vessels passing through Red Sea, Arabian Sea, Bab al-Mandab Strait, and Gulf of Aden, following the expiration of the four-day deadline set by Ansarallah leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi for Israel to permit aid into Gaza.
“Any Israeli ship attempting to violate this ban will be targeted in the declared area of operations. This ban will continue until the crossings to the Gaza Strip are reopened and aid and food and medicine supplies are allowed to enter”, YAF said in a statement.
