The US military launched new strikes against Houthi targets inside Yemen on Tuesday, targeting anti-ship ballistic missiles controlled by the Iran-backed rebel group, a two US defense officials told CNN on Tuesday.
US forces struck and destroyed four Houthi anti-ship ballistic missiles that were preparing to launch from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, the officials said, adding that they presented an imminent threat to merchant and US Navy vessels in the area.
A few hours later, however, the Houthis launched an anti-ship ballistic missile into international shipping lanes in the Southern Red Sea, hitting the M/V Zografia, a Maltese flagged bulk carrier, the officials said. The ship did not suffer significant damage and was able to continue its journey.
The strikes are at least the third round of attacks the US military has launched against the Houthis’ infrastructure since last Thursday, when the US and UK conducted a joint operation that targeted command and control nodes and weapons depots used by the Houthis to launch missile and drone attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea.
That operation only destroyed less than a third of the Houthis’ weapons capabilities, however, a US official told CNN on Monday.
This story is breaking and will be updated.
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