The nighttime bombings launched in Yemen are a “joint operation” by the US and Britain to “destroy” the Houthi rebels’ ability to launch attacks against merchant shipping, the British Ministry of Defense announced, as media reported airstrikes on locations in the Arabian Peninsula country with at least two dead and ten injured.

“British (armed) forces have been engaged in a joint operation with US forces to wear down the military capabilities of the Houthis, who continue to carry out attacks against international shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden,” said a British press release. Ministry of Defence, specifying that RAF Typhoon aircraft in particular used “Paveway IV guided bombs”, which generally carry a 500lb (about 230kg) explosive charge.

The operation was confirmed via X by the joint command of the US armed forces responsible for the Middle East (CENTCOM, “central command”), specifying that US and British aircraft hit “13 targets” in areas controlled by the Houthis, adding also that earlier yesterday eight remote-controlled unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of the Shiite rebels were destroyed.

According to Yemeni media, the bombings on the night of Thursday to Friday took place in various areas of the country, in particular in Hodeidah, where a port of strategic importance is located, in a second port further south, as well as in the capital Sanaa.

AFP journalists in Hodeidah and Sana’a report that strong explosions were heard.

According to the Houthi-affiliated Al-Masira TV network, there were also bombings targeting telecommunications infrastructure in the city of Taiz.

The network spoke of at least two dead and ten injured.

Since mid-November, the Iranian-backed Shiite militia Ansar Allah (“Supporters of God”), better known by the family name of its leaders, the Houthis, has launched dozens of missile and drone attacks against commercial and then military ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, stressing that it is acting in “solidarity” with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, against the background of the devastating war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas.

The US, Israel’s main international ally, in December formed an international air force to protect navigation in this strategically important maritime area. A naval force was also deployed earlier this year by the EU.

Since January, the US armed forces, acting in many cases in cooperation with those of Britain, have been hitting Houthi positions and facilities in Yemen.

This is at least the fifth known such operation since January 12, not counting those by US forces, which are very frequent.

But the US-British operations do not appear to be deterring the Houthis, who control most of northern Yemen. The rebels now say they are also targeting US and British merchant ships, in addition to those they claim are “linked” to Israel.