Houthis say six killed in US strikes on Yemen’s capital

Houthi-affiliated Al Masirah news reported on Sunday that two US raids also targeted the al-Yatmah area in Khab and al-Sha’af District in al-Jawf governate, northern Yemen.

In a separate statement on Sunday evening, the group announced a US MQ-9 drone was shot down in the airspace of Hajjah governorate by a locally made surface-to-air missile. The US has not commented on that so far.

Houthi-held areas of Yemen have seen near-daily deadly strikes blamed on the US since Washington launched an air campaign against the group on March 15 to force them to stop threatening vessels in key maritime routes.

Dozens of people in Yemen have been killed in the latest US strikes. Civilians have been targeted, families wiped out, military sites destroyed and soldiers killed.

The Houthis began targeting ships transiting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, as well as Israeli territory, after the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023, pausing the attacks during a January ceasefire.

Israel cut off all supplies to Gaza at the start of March and resumed its offensive on the Palestinian territory on March 18, ending the short-lived truce. Since then, the Houthis have launched attacks targeting US military ships and Israel in solidarity with Palestinians.

The group on Sunday claimed responsibility for a missile launched towards a military base in the Israeli port city of Ashdod and Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv.

The Israeli military claimed it believed it was successful in intercepting the incoming missile.

The Houthis have backed the Gaza ceasefire agreement reached between Israel and Hamas and have repeatedly pledged to halt their military operations if a truce comes into force.