During the night of January 12^th to 13th, the United States once again conducted airstrikes against the Houthi rebels in Yemen, approximately 24 hours after an initial attack on various military sites coordinated by a coalition including the United Kingdom (directly involved), Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, and Bahrain. In the latest assault, a radar station was targeted by the destroyer USS Carney, a military vessel that deployed Tomahawk missiles.

The Central Command of the U.S Army defined the recent action as a continuation aimed at a particular military target associated with the January 12 attacks. The objective was to disrupt the Houthi rebels’ capability to launch attacks on both ships and merchant vessels.

Over the weekend, the Houthi rebels issued a response through their spokesperson, Mohammed Abdulsalam, who, in a conversation with Reuters, indicated that the group experienced minimal damage in the latest attack. He also asserted that the group forces maintain the ability to target vessels en route to Israel in the Red Sea.

Another spokesperson, Nasreddin Amer, Houthis’ deputy information secretary, told Al Jazeera that: “There were no injuries, no material nor human losses,” adding that that the group would come back with a “strong and effective response”.

Both this more targeted attack and the broader one on Thursday night were carried out in response to the attacks by the same rebels in recent weeks against cargo ships passing through the Red Sea.

Following the first assault, substantial demonstrations took place in several Yemeni cities, notably in the capital Sana’a, where hundreds of thousands of individuals assembled on Friday. In the aftermath of the attack, there were expectations of a military response from the militants. Nevertheless, as per the U.S. military, the sole reaction thus far has been the launch of a missile into the Red Sea, with no impact on passing ships.

The Houthi rebels, a Shiite militant group with Iranian support, currently hold sway over roughly half of Yemen. Over the past months, they have perceived the conflict in Gaza as a strategic opportunity. The Houthis assert that their actions targeting commercial vessels in the Red Sea are a response to the Israeli intervention in Gaza and the ongoing war against Hamas, a Sunni group also backed by Iran. According to the United States, the Houthi rebels have executed 27 assaults on commercial vessels in the Red Sea since seizing control of the Galaxy Leader and its multinational crew of 25 on November 19^th.

These incidents represent the initial attacks on Yemeni territory since 2016 and signify the first instance of U.S. military intervention in response to drone and missile attacks on commercial ships since the commencement of Israel’s war on Gaza on October 7^th.

Nevertheless, not all the key allies of the United States endorse the Yemeni strikes. The Netherlands, Australia, Canada, and Bahrain offered logistical and intelligence assistance, while Germany, Denmark, New Zealand, and South Korea issued a collective statement supporting the attacks and cautioning about potential future actions. In contrast, Italy, Spain, and France opted against signing or taking part, expressing concerns about the risk of broader escalation.