The United States military has confirmed it carried out a precision strike on a fuel terminal at the Red Sea port of Ras Isa in Yemen, targeting infrastructure used by Houthi forces.
The attack, which took place on Thursday, is part of an ongoing campaign to diminish the financial and logistical capabilities of the Iranian-backed group.
According to a statement from the US Central Command (CENTCOM), the strike aimed to “degrade the Houthis’ ability to fund and execute attacks” on commercial shipping routes in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
The fuel facility at Ras Isa was described as a critical asset that supported Houthi military operations, including drone and missile strikes on international vessels.
Houthi media outlets have reported that the airstrike resulted in at least 33 deaths, including several paramedics who were responding to an earlier blast.
The group has condemned the attack as a “massacre,” and said it would retaliate. Images broadcast on Houthi-controlled television showed extensive damage to the port and emergency responders sifting through the debris.
Reuters news agency reported that US officials had not immediately responded to inquiries regarding the civilian death toll provided by Houthi sources.
The discrepancy over casualties has heightened concerns among humanitarian groups, who warn that escalating military action in Yemen could further inflame an already dire humanitarian situation.
Thursday’s strike follows a sharp increase in US-led military operations in Yemen over the past month, as part of an effort to curb Houthi aggression in key maritime zones.
The uptick in strikes was recently highlighted by an unusual security lapse when a journalist was mistakenly added to a Signal chat involving senior US and allied officials coordinating the Yemen operations. That incident revealed further details of a broader campaign against Houthi infrastructure.
The Houthis began targeting international shipping lanes shortly after the Israel-Gaza war erupted in October 2023, saying their attacks were in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
Since then, the group has launched dozens of drone and missile attacks on commercial vessels traversing the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, a crucial maritime chokepoint through which nearly 15% of global seaborne trade flows.
Several ships have been damaged or sunk, and the threat has prompted major shipping firms to reroute vessels around the Cape of Good Hope, significantly increasing transit times and fuel costs.
The disruption has also raised fears of broader regional instability and has prompted a coalition of Western nations, led by the US and UK, to conduct strikes against Houthi positions in Yemen.
Despite the campaign, the Houthis remain defiant. In a statement released Friday, the group vowed to continue targeting ships “linked to Israel or its allies,” and accused the US of committing war crimes.
With tensions escalating and the death toll mounting, calls are growing for renewed diplomatic efforts to defuse the crisis and prevent a further descent into violence in Yemen — a nation already reeling from nearly a decade of civil war and humanitarian catastrophe.