US Hammers Underground Houthi Weapons Sites In Yemen With Airstrikes

U.S. forces launched airstrikes against Houthi underground weapons facilities in Yemen on Wednesday, Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed.

The Houthis have largely shut down shipping in the Red Sea and have been involved in attacks against Israel and U.S. forces in the Middle East since October 2023, the start of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. CENTCOM forces conducted a series of strikes against Houthi weapons storage sites in Yemen on Wednesday to further degrade the terrorist group’s capabilities and deter them from future attacks, the command said.

“These actions were taken to degrade the Houthi’s capability to continue their reckless and unlawful attacks on international commercial shipping and on U.S., coalition, and merchant personnel and vessels,” the command said in a statement. “CENTCOM forces targeted the Houthi’s hardened underground facilities housing missiles, weapons components, and other munitions used to target military and civilian vessels throughout the region.”

The operation was conducted jointly between CENTCOM naval and air forces, including a B-2 Spirit long-range stealth bomber, a uniquely shaped aircraft considered one of the most capable in the U.S. fleet. It is the first instance of the B-2 being deployed against the Houthis, according to The Washington Post.

“The employment of the B-2 bomber demonstrates U.S. global strike capabilities to reach these targets, when necessary, anytime, anywhere,” CENTCOM said on Thursday. “Our battle damage assessments are underway and do not indicate civilian casualties.”

The Houthis have been involved in the ongoing chaos in the Middle East as Israel is currently in conflict with Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran and a variety of other Islamic terrorist networks in the region. In addition to launching strikes against Israel, the Houthis have also conducted attacks against merchant vessels traversing through the Red Sea, effectively deterring them to the point where shipping through the region has considerably decreased, according to the Congressional Research Service.

U.S. and coalition forces have deployed to the Red Sea to try to counter Houthi attacks against merchant vessels, which has largely been successful. The Houthis have attempted to strike U.S. forces in the region but these attacks are routinely intercepted.

The Biden-Harris administration removed the Houthis from its Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) in 2021, citing that the designation prevented the U.S. from delivering humanitarian assistance to Yemen.