US Strikes Back: Hits Iran-Backed Houthi Rebels in Yemen With Tomahawk Missiles and Fighters

The U.S. and U.K. hit back at Iran-backed Houthi militants Thursday night — raining Tomahawk cruise missiles and bombs from fighter jets on targets in Yemen.

U.S. President Joe Biden said the airstrikes were a response to repeated Houthi attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea, but did not mention Iran in the statement.

The joint airstrikes were aimed at launch sites and storage depots, one defense official who was briefed on the matter told The Messenger.

More than a dozen targets in Yemen were hit.

Two residents of Hodieda, the largest port city controlled by the Houthis which lies on the Red Sea, told the Associated Press that they heard five strong explosions as the strikes began.

The Houthis have been targeting commercial shipping routes to show their support for Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that attacked Israel on October 7.

The U.S. and U.K, both have substantial military hardware in the Red Sea as part of Operation Prosperity Guardian, which was launched to protect shipping traffic.

American forces include a carrier strike group, which includes the U.S.S. Dwight D. Eisenhower nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, one cruiser and two destroyers.

The Royal Navy has the guided-missile destroyer HMS Diamond.

Australia, Bahrain, Canada and the Netherlands also supported the strikes, according to the White House.

It was unclear exactly which military assets were used for the strikes, but a source confirmed Tomahawk cruise missiles — including some fired from a U.S. submarine — and strike fighters were involved.

Four Royal Air Force Eurofighter Typhoon jets that took off from Cyprus participated in the strike, dropping Paveway bombs on two Houthi military facilities, according to the U.K.

The U.S. strike order would have come via Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's hospital room. He resumed his duties, including operational control of the U.S. military, on Friday — while continuing to recover following complications after surgery for prostate cancer.

Thus far, the U.S. and allies have focused on defending commercial shipping from Houthi attacks, instead of going on the offensive against the group amid concerns about triggering a broader conflict in the region.

But recent, continued Houthi attacks appeared to have forced a change in U.S. calculations, with the strikes coming a day after American and British forces said they had repelled the largest assault yet on Red Sea shipping by the militants.

Naval forces from the two countries shot down 21 drones and missiles fired by the Houthis towards the southern Red Sea on Tuesday.

Officially known as Ansar Allah but generally referred to by the name of their founder, Hussein al-Houthi, the Houthis are members of a minority Shiite sect in northern Yemen.

For the past decade, they have fought a brutal civil war against Yemen’s internationally recognized government and an international coalition led by Saudi Arabia (and supported by the U.S.), all the while receiving substantial economic support and weaponry from Iran.

“These strikes are in direct response to unprecedented Houthi attacks against international maritime vessels in the Red Sea-including the use of anti-ship ballistic missiles for the first time in history,” Biden said in announcing the military action.

“These attacks have endangered U.S. personnel, civilian mariners, and our partners, jeopardized trade, and threatened freedom of navigation. More than 50 nations have been affected in 27 attacks on international commercial shipping.”

Disclosing details of the attack on Wednesday, Britain’s Defence Secretary Grant Shapps had said the situation had become “unsustainable.”

“This cannot continue and cannot be allowed to continue,” he added.

U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken also weighed in Wednesday, during a stop in Bahrain as part of his latest official trip to Middle East, saying: “If these attacks continue… there will be consequences. Again, this represents a clear threat to the interests of countries around the world, and it’s important that the international community come together and respond to that.”

Blinken flew back to the U.S. on Thursday, after a final stop in Egypt.