US bombs Yemen for second night as Houthis threaten retaliation

Militants fire missiles and drones at American aircraft carrier but barrage is shot down

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American planes bombed Yemen's Houthis for a second night as the US Defence Secretary pledged “unrelenting” attacks on the militant group.

The Houthis earlier claimed to have fired rockets and drones at an American aircraft carrier, though US officials said all of the projectiles were intercepted.

“The minute the Houthis say we'll stop shooting at your ships, we'll stop shooting at your drones, this campaign will end, but until then it will be unrelenting,” Pete Hegseth told Fox News late on Sunday.

US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched large-scale military strikes against Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen over the group's attacks targeting Red Sea shipping, in the largest military operation in the Middle East since he took office in January. At least 53 people, including five children, were killed and 98 others were injured in the first round of strikes, Houthis' Health Ministry spokesman Anis Al Asbahi said.

Houthi-affiliated Al Masirah TV reported US strikes attacked Hodeidah and Al Jawf. The group also pledged to continue attacks. “If they continue their aggression, we will continue the escalation,” Houthi leader Abdul Malik Al Houthi said on Sunday, pledging to continue attacking US ships in the Red Sea.

The group claimed on Monday to have attacked the USS Harry Truman twice in 24 hours, calling it retaliation for the deadly US strikes. The Houthis said they had launched 18 missiles and a drone at the ship in the Red Sea, without providing evidence. In a statement posted to Telegram on Monday, a representative said the attacks on the carrier group were “in retaliation to the continued American aggression against our country”.

US F-16 and F-18 fighter aircraft shot down a combined 11 drones on Sunday, an official told Reuters. The official said the drones did not come close to the Harry Truman aircraft carrier.

The Houthis have launched hundreds of attacks on international ships, threatening international trade routes, in what they said was an expression of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.

The US redesignated the Houthis a foreign terrorist organisation this month, reversing a Joe Biden-era policy.

The UN called on the US military and the Houthis to cease “all military activity” on Sunday. “We note with concern the launching of multiple strikes on Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen by the United States overnight, which reportedly resulted in death and injuries,” said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.

US conducts strikes on Houthi targets

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Mr Al Houthi on Sunday called for a “million-strong” march of defiance after deadly US strikes hit the capital, Sanaa, and other areas. “I call on our dear people to go out tomorrow on the anniversary of the Battle of Badr in a million-strong march in Sanaa and the rest of the governorates,” he said in a televised address, referring to a celebrated military victory by the Prophet Mohammed.

US strikes on Yemen’s Houthi rebels send a warning message to Iran but will prolong civilian suffering, which the group will then exploit, officials told The National on Sunday.

The US is exerting so-called maximum pressure on Iran and its proxies in the region. Mr Trump has increased sanctions on Tehran while trying to convince the regime to return to the negotiating table over its nuclear programme.

Late on Sunday, Mr Hegseth spoke to Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani regarding the US strikes on Yemen, an Iraqi government statement said.

The US Defence Secretary reaffirmed that Washington “will continue its operations unless Houthi attacks on US forces and Red Sea navigation cease”, the statement read. But he said the US “does not seek escalation and that military operations will cease as soon as these attacks cease”.

Mr Al Sudani said “de-escalation and dialogue are the most effective means of addressing crises in a sensitive and vital region like the Middle East”.

Editorial: Houthi intransigence has put Yemen's people in the firing line

Reuters