In the deadliest attack since Washington conducted a large-scale military operation against Yemen’s Houthi insurgents last month, US air raids targeting the Ras Isa fuel port killed at least 74 individuals, the Houthi-held ministry of health declared on Friday. The raid further injured 171 others, per health ministry spokesperson Anees al-Asbahi, as he indicated rescue teams are continually retrieving bodies from the location.
The American attacks targeted the strategically important Ras Isa terminal in western Yemen, with a 3 million-barrel storage capacity and the nation’s first oil export terminal, constructed roughly four decades ago. US Central Command confirmed the attacks but declined to speak on the number of casualties given by Houthi authorities.
It was the assessment of the US military that the operation was designed to damage a principal economic resource of the Houthi militia, who have held significant tracts of Yemen for the last decade. “These strikes were designed to weaken the Houthis’ economic lifeline, which they still leverage to their own benefit while causing hardship to their own population,” CENTCOM explained in a press release.
The attack represents a major escalation of Washington’s push to stop Houthi missile and drone attacks on Red Sea shipping lanes. The Houthis started attacking ships associated with Israel in November 2023 in a show of solidarity with Palestinians during the conflict in Gaza.
While a temporary truce in Gaza earlier this year resulted in a temporary halt of Red Sea attacks, the Houthis promised to resume operations once Israel resumed its offensive. Nevertheless, no new maritime strikes have been reported since then. A prior round of US airstrikes in March killed more than 50 people, Houthi sources say.
Washington has threatened that its military operation will continue unless the Houthis stop their attacks on international shipping.
