By Al-Fassel | 2025-01-21

The US military destroyed two underground weapons storage facilities in Yemen that the Houthis had been using to attack international shipping in the Red Sea in "multiple precision strikes" conducted January 8.

The two subterranean sites, in areas of Yemen controlled by the Iran-backed group, were being used as Advanced Conventional Weapon (ACW) storage facilities, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement.

The Houthis used these facilities "to conduct attacks against US Navy warships and merchant vessels in the southern Red Sea and Gulf of Aden," it said.

The Houthis' Al-Masirah TV reported five raids in Amran province and two in Sanaa province, according to Voice of America.

ACWs include Man-Portable Air Defense Systems (MANPADS); heavy military equipment such as tanks, aircraft and missiles; sensors and lasers; and precision-guided munitions.

In Yemen, the Houthis use ACW facilities for the final assembly of medium-range ballistic missile and drones.

The January 8 strikes are part of the US military's effort "to degrade Iranian-backed Houthi attempts to threaten regional partners and military and merchant vessels in the region," CENTCOM said.

US forces conducted precision airstrikes December 21 against a missile storage facility and a command-and-control facility operated by the Houthis in Sanaa.

During the operation, US forces also shot down multiple Houthi one-way attack drones and an anti-ship cruise missile (ASCM) over the Red Sea, it said.

Degrading Houthi capabilities

The Houthis have been bombarding commercial shipping in the Red Sea for more than a year and have attempted numerous attacks on US naval vessels.

Since November 2023, the Houthis have launched more than 100 attacks on freighters in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden.

The violence has affected vessels linked to the interests of more than 55 nations, and has forced shipowners to reroute ships around the Cape of Good Hope, adding up to two weeks to transit times and increasing shipping costs.

In response, US forces have launched air strikes on Houthi targets used to launch the attacks.

The strikes aim to degrade Houthi capabilities and ensure the upholding of the international rules-based order and the free flow of commerce through the region, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said January 8.

"We're not going to be able to take off the map every single capability," she said, but every strike "further degrades [the Houthis'] capabilities and takes things off the map that they can use against merchant ships or our own Navy ships."