US-UK coalition launches airstrikes on Yemeni capital, cities: Houthi TV

Highlights

Warplanes of the US-UK naval coalition launched 12 airstrikes on the Yemeni cities of Sanaa, Hodeidah, and Dhamar, the Houthi-run media reported. ...

Warplanes of the US-UK naval coalition launched 12 airstrikes on the Yemeni cities of Sanaa, Hodeidah, and Dhamar, the Houthi-run media reported.

In the capital, Sanaa, the coalition conducted four strikes, targeting the Military Maintenance Installation, a military site under Houthi control in the heart of the city on Friday, reports Xinhua news agency, quoting Houthi-run al Masirah TV.

Following the violent attacks, huge explosions rocked the whole city, and black smoke billowed from the targeted site. Residents said ambulances were seen rushing to the scene.

In separate strikes against the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah, the naval coalition targeted the airport and the city's northwestern Al-Katheeb area, according to al-Masirah TV.

Meanwhile, another airstrike targeted a Houthi military site in the southern part of the Dhamar city.

The US-UK coalition has not commented on the incidents, and there have been no reports about casualties yet.

Also on Friday, Hashim Sharaf al-Din, a spokesperson for the Houthi-run administration, said in a statement via al-Masirah TV that the US-UK airstrikes "will not scare" the group, vowing more attacks against Israeli cities and "Israeli-linked" ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

Yemen's Houthi group has seized control of Sanaa and large swathes of the country since late 2014 after forcing the internationally recognised government out of the capital in a civil war.

The group has launched sporadic attacks on Israel and disrupted "Israeli-linked" shipping in the Red Sea since November last year, allegedly to support Palestinians in their conflict with Israelis.

In response, the US-UK naval coalition stationed in the region has conducted regular air raids and missile strikes since January against Houthi targets to deter the group.