The U.S. military carried out another retaliatory airstrike against a Houthi stronghold in Yemen Saturday after determining the site posed a violent threat to commercial vessels in the Red Sea.
The airstrike followed a day of multiple such strikes by the British and U.S. militaries against Houthi rebels in the region. Those strikes hit 60 targets in 28 locations across Yemen. President Joe Biden warned there would be more strikes to come. Journalists working for the Associated Press in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa reported hearing one loud explosion Saturday.
Updates since I posted this map (my best yet)
– 3 waves of airstrikes over 2 days
– 29 locations, 60+ targets
– 8 warships, 31 aircraft, 1 sub
– Follow on strike from USS Carney
– 150+ precision-guided munitions fired
– Houthis launch more ballistic missiles at commercial ships https://t.co/sqhPAlzAlS— Ian Ellis (@ianellisjones) January 13, 2024
Calling the airstrike a “follow-on action” to Friday’s assaults, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said early Saturday local time that the Navy destroyer USS Carney conducted the strike against a Houthi radar installation using Tomahawk land attack missiles (TLAM) — long-range cruise missiles used from the sea to strike targets deep inland.
USS Carney is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer named after Admiral Robert Carney, the Chief of Naval Operations when Dwight D. Eisenhower was president.
“At 3:45 a.m. (Sana’a time) on Jan 13., U.S. forces conducted a strike against a Houthi radar site in Yemen,” said CENTCOM in a statement released on X, formerly Twitter, shortly after the Saturday airstrike.
At 3:45 a.m. (Sana’a time) on Jan 13., U.S. forces conducted a strike against a Houthi radar site in Yemen. This strike was conducted by the USS Carney (DDG 64) using Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles and was a follow-on action on a specific military target associated with strikes… pic.twitter.com/YE5BKJLGBv
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) January 13, 2024
“This strike was conducted by the USS Carney (DDG 64) using Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles and was a follow-on action on a specific military target associated with strikes taken on Jan. 12 designed to degrade the Houthi’s ability to attack maritime vessels, including commercial vessels,” the statement added.
Reporters asked President Biden Saturday as he was departing from the White House to spend the weekend at Camp David about the message the U.S. sent to Iran regarding the strikes against the Houthis. “We delivered it privately and we’re confident we’re well prepared,” the president said.
“We will make sure that we respond to the Houthis if they continue this outrageous behavior along with our allies,” Biden told reporters Friday. In November, the White House said it was considering returning the Houthi military group to its designation as a terrorist group after Houthis began targeting commercial vessels in the Red Sea last year.
