British jets bomb Yemen in joint aggression with US, Ansarullah leaders vow response
Britain says its fighter jets have carried out airstrikes on Yemen in a joint military operation with the United States, prompting a stern warning from Ansarullah leaders who said the aggression will not go unanswered.
The Ministry of Defense said in a statement on Wednesday that Royal Air Force Typhoon FGR4s took part in the raid, dropping Paveway IV guided bombs in an area 15 miles south of the capital, Sana’a.
It claimed the fighter jets targeted a cluster of buildings that were used by Yemen’s Ansarullah movement to manufacture drones that had targeted shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
The British defense secretary, John Healey, said the airstrike came in response to “a persistent threat from the Houthis to freedom of navigation.”
“We conducted these strikes, supported by the US, to degrade Houthi capabilities and prevent further attacks against UK and international shipping.”
It was the first public acknowledgment by the UK army of a joint airstrike with US forces against Yemen since the Trump administration escalated the attacks on the North African country in March.
Yemen warns of consequences
Ansarullah leaders warned that Britain should “anticipate the consequences of its aggression,” according to a statement published by Yemen’s al-Masirah television network.
“The British enemy must carefully consider the consequences of its involvement and be prepared to face the repercussions.”
Yemen will “respond to this unlawful and unjustified aggression,” which came as “part of ongoing Anglo-American efforts to support the Israeli enemy by attempting to block Yemen’s support for Palestine, enabling the Israeli enemy to continue its genocide in Gaza.”
The Yemeni armed forces have been attacking Israeli and US targets in the Red Sea in support of Palestinians in Gaza since Tel Aviv launched its devastating war on the besieged Palestinian territory in October 2023.
Britain had joined with the US to carry out airstrikes on Yemen between January and May 2024, but has not been directly involved in a new and more intense wave of US strikes under Trump’s administration.
