DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. B-2 long-range stealth bombers launched airstrikes early Thursday targeting underground bunkers used by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, officials said. .
It was not immediately clear what damage the attack caused.
However, there are no previous reports that B-2 Spirits have been used in attacks against the Houthis, who have been attacking ships in the Red Sea corridor for months over the Israeli-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.
The Houthi satellite news channel Al-Masira reported air strikes around Yemen’s capital Sanaa, where the Houthis have been based since 2014. It also reported air strikes around the Houthi stronghold of Saada. They did not provide immediate information on damage or casualties.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said in a statement that the B-2 bombers targeted “five fortified underground weapons storage sites in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.”
The attack also appears to be an indirect warning to Iran, the Houthis’ main backer, which has targeted Israel with two ballistic missile attacks in the past year. Given that the B-2 is the only active-duty aircraft capable of dropping the GBU-57, known as the “Massive Ordnance Penetrator,” it could be used against American strikes against fortified Iranian nuclear facilities like Natanz or Ford. will be used.
“This was a unique demonstration of the United States’ ability to target facilities, no matter how deeply buried, fortified, or fortified, that our adversaries are trying to keep out of their reach,” Austin said. he said.
Austin and U.S. Central Command did not provide an immediate assessment of the damage caused. However, the Central Command said in a statement that initial assessments suggested that no civilians were killed.
The Red Sea has become a battleground for shippers ever since the Houthis launched a campaign targeting ships that ply the waterway, through which $1 trillion in cargo once a year passed.
Since the Gaza war began in October 2023, the Houthis have targeted more than 80 commercial ships with missiles and drones. In the operation, the Houthis captured one ship, sank two others, and killed four sailors. Other missiles and drones were intercepted by the U.S.-led coalition in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets, including Western warships.
The rebels claim they are targeting ships with ties to Israel, the United States, or the United Kingdom in order to force an end to Israel’s operations against Hamas in Gaza. However, many of the ships attacked had little or no connection to the conflict, including those bound for Iran.
The Houthis also continue to fire missiles targeting Israel and have shot down numerous U.S. military MQ-9 Reaper drones. Rebels are threatening new attacks in response to Israel’s ground invasion of Lebanon and the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
The description and location given by the Houthis on Thursday are consistent with known underground bases operated by the rebels. The rebels have been locked in a deadlocked war with the Saudi-led coalition since 2015 that has devastated the Arab world’s poorest country.
An analysis published in April by the International Institute for Strategic Studies found that the Houthis had built a tunnel in which they once planted Scud missiles for Yemen during the 33-year rule of Yemeni strongman Ali Abdullah Saleh. It is said that it has been renovated. Analyst Fabian Hintz wrote that those locations include al-Hafa and Jabal Attan military bases, the former presidential palace and Yemen’s state television station in Sanaa.
Hintz added that the Houthis are also building what appears to be their own extensive network of tunnels near Saada.
“The fact that the Houthis have begun construction of large new facilities following a ceasefire agreement with the Saudi-led coalition suggests that they are focused on consolidating themselves and strengthening their military capabilities. ” he wrote. Iran similarly relies on a network of underground missile bases.
The nuclear-capable B-2 was first seen in combat during the 1999 Kosovo war, but because each aircraft is worth about $1 billion, the U.S. military rarely uses them in combat. It also dropped bombs in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya. The planes are based at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, where they normally conduct long-range strikes, and some B-2s were in Australia in September.
