US military says it conducted strikes against Yemen’s Houthi rebels

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The US military says it has conducted several days of strikes targeting Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

The strikes included US Air Force and US Navy aircraft, including the Navy’s F-35C stealth fighter jet, it says Thursday.

The military also released video showing a strike by an MQ-9 Reaper drone on a mobile missile launcher placed on the back of what appeared to be a truck. A person standing next to the launcher is seen running away after the strike.

“This targeted operation was conducted in response to the Houthi’s repeated and unlawful attacks on international commercial shipping, as well as US, coalition and merchant vessels in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden,” the US military’s Central Command says. “It also aimed to degrade the Houthi’s ability to threaten regional partners.”

The strikes happened Saturday and Sunday.

The Houthis launched an attack this week targeted two US Navy destroyers entering the Red Sea. The Americans said they “engaged and defeated” eight bomb-carrying drones, five anti-ship ballistic missiles and four cruise missiles that the Houthis used to target the vessels.

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