The United States carried out more strikes against Houthi towns in Yemen, according to a US official, a day after launching a coordinated multinational attack against nearly 30 Houthi positions.
The additional attacks carried out on Friday night (ET) were much smaller in scope than those of the previous night. They targeted a radar installation used by the Houthis, the official said.
The Houthis had fired at least one anti-ship ballistic missile at a commercial ship early Friday.
On Thursday, the United States and the United Kingdom attacked 28 separate Houthi sites in an attempt to disrupt their ability to fire on international shipping lanes in the Red Sea. The two countries also had the support of Canada, Australia, Bahrain and the Netherlands.
The latest attack was carried out unilaterally by the United States, the official said.
The United States had threatened the possibility of additional military action if the Houthis continued to launch drone and missile attacks against commercial vessels in the Red Sea.
“We will be sure to respond to the Houthis if they continue this outrageous behavior alongside our allies,” US President Joe Biden said while in Pennsylvania on Friday.
But after the U.S.-led attacks, the Iran-backed rebel group launched another anti-ship ballistic missile toward a commercial ship in the Gulf of Aden, south of Yemen.
The new attacks also come after the White House said it was trying to avoid an escalation.
“All we're doing, all we're trying to do is prevent further escalation,” John Kirby, strategic communications coordinator at the National Security Council, told CNN on Friday.
The set of US-led attacks on Thursday night targeted radar facilities and command and control nodes, as well as facilities used for the storage and launch of drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles. These are the main weapons that the Houthis have used to attack commercial ships in the Red Sea. The attacks killed five people and wounded six more, according to a Houthi army spokesman.
The Houthis promised their forces would respond to the attack and called the American and British assets “legitimate targets.”
READ MORE: US carries out new attacks against Houthis in Yemen a day after attacking nearly 30 locations
