The missile salvo was fired from US Navy ships stationed in the Red Sea and targeted sites that were “prepared to launch attacks”, unnamed US officials stated.

Over a dozen locations were said to have been hit in the strikes.

The operation follows a Houthi strike against a US-owned bulk carrier ship Genco Picardy in the Gulf of Aden earlier on Wednesday, with group spokesman Yahya Sarea claiming a “direct hit” on the cargo vessel.

“The naval forces will not hesitate to target all sources of threat in the Red and Arabian sea within the legitimate right to defend Yemen and to continue supporting the oppressed Palestinian people,” he added.

US Central Command (CENTCOM), the agency responsible for overseeing operations in the Middle East and Central Asia, announced there were no injuries in the attack and that the vessel remained seaworthy, but noted “some damage” to the ship.

The attack on the cargo vessel comes on the heels of several similar strikes in recent weeks, after the Houthis vowed to target any ship affiliated with Israel amid the ongoing war in Gaza. Washington has responded with three previous rounds of missile strikes on Houthi targets, and earlier on Wednesday announced the redesignation of the group as a terrorist organization.

“The Houthis must be held accountable for their actions, but it should not be at the expense of Yemeni civilians,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.

“As the Department of State moves forward with this designation, we are taking significant steps to mitigate any adverse impacts this designation may have on the people of Yemen.”

However, the top US diplomat added that the decision would be reversed if the Houthis ceased their attacks on ships transiting the Red Sea.

The group had previously been placed on the Foreign Terrorist Organization list under the administration of President Donald Trump, but were delisted in February 2021.

The Houthis has confirmed the latest round of US airstrikes in Yemen, according to a statement on the Houthis-run Saba news agency on late Wednesday night in to Thursday morning (local time).

“The American-British aggression renewed its targeting of a number of Yemeni governorates,” the statement read.

“The American-British aggression aircraft targeted the governorates of Hodeidah, Taiz, Dhamar, Al-Bayda and Saada,” it added.

The White House’s National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan made the announcement on Wednesday, saying it was a response to Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea.

“Today, in response to these continuing threats and attacks, the United States announced the designation of Ansarallah, also known as the Houthis, as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist,” Sullivan stated in a statement.

However, he added that the designation – which comes into effect in 30 days – could be reevaluated if the Houthis cease attacks in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

Administration officials say the designation is aimed at deterring the Houthis from their ongoing aggression in the Red Sea.

It is the latest in a series of US actions targeting the armed group, and comes as the specter of a wider regional war in the Middle East looms large amid Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza.

The Biden administration claimed that the re-designation of the Houthis, which comes with harsh sanctions, will not have a negative impact on the people of Yemen since the sanctions will include “unprecedented” humanitarian carve-outs.

“We are sending a clear message: commercial shipments into Yemeni ports on which the Yemeni people rely for food, medicine and fuel should continue and are not covered by our sanctions,” the White House announced in a news statement on Wednesday.

The administration removed the Houthis’ SDGT designation and de-listed it as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) in February 2021, after it was designated by former President Donald Trump’s administration in its final weeks.

Rights advocates have warned that blacklisting the Houthis would complicate the work of humanitarian organisations operating in areas under the group’s control. Yemen is enduring one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises where millions of people are dependent on international aid.

A spokesman for the Yemeni group has stated that the attacks on ships in the Red Sea heading to Israel will continue, despite the designation.

The US designation of Yemen’s Houthis as a terrorist group will not affect their operations to prevent Israeli ships or ships heading to Israel from crossing the Red Sea, the Arabian Sea, and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdulsalam told Reuters on Wednesday.

In solidarity with the Palestinians in besieged territory, the Yemeni armed forces have targeted ships in the Red Sea with owners linked to Israel or those going to and from ports in the occupied territories.

In response, the US has formed a military coalition against Yemeni forces in the Red Sea and endangered maritime navigation in the strategic waterway.

The US and the UK, backed by Bahrain, Australia, Canada and the Netherlands, struck more than 60 targets at almost 30 locations in Yemen on Friday, killing five people and injuring six others.

On Saturday, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that a “follow-on action” was conducted against a Yemeni radar facility in Sana’a by the Navy destroyer USS Carney using Tomahawk land attack missiles.

The source stated on Wednesday the Biden administration is expected to announce plans in which it will redesignate the Houthi movement in Yemen as specially designated global terrorists.

The administration removed the Houthis’ Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDTG) designation and de-listed it as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) in February 2021, after it was designated by the Donald Trump administration in its final weeks.

At the time, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the decision to remove the group’s designations was driven by concerns that it could imperil the ability to deliver crucial assistance to the people of Yemen.

He added it was “a recognition of the dire humanitarian situation in Yemen”.

Both the designations trigger an asset freeze, but only an FTO designation imposes immigration restrictions on members, according to the State Department.

The SDGT designation also does not impose sanctions on those who provide “material support” to the group.

Pressure has grown on the administration to reimpose the designations as the group carries out attacks on vessels in the Red Sea.

In solidarity with the Palestinians in besieged territory, the Yemeni armed forces have targeted ships in the Red Sea with owners linked to Israel or those going to and from ports in the occupied territories.

In response, the US has formed a military coalition against Yemeni forces in the Red Sea and endangered maritime navigation in the strategic waterway.

The US and the UK, backed by Bahrain, Australia, Canada and the Netherlands, struck more than 60 targets at almost 30 locations in Yemen on Friday, killing five people and injuring six others.

On Saturday, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that a “follow-on action” was conducted against a Yemeni radar facility in Sana’a by the Navy destroyer USS Carney using Tomahawk land attack missiles.

The assaults prompted Yemen’s Supreme Political Council to issue a statement, saying “all American-British interests have become legitimate targets”.