SANAA, May 31, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - The United States and Britain have carried out air strikes on several sites in Yemen in what they said was a bid to degrade Huthi rebels' ability to conduct attacks on maritime shipping.

   AFP journalists heard loud explosions in the capital Sanaa and the port city of Hodeida overnight from Thursday to Friday.

   The Huthi-controlled television channel Al-Masirah said strikes had also targeted telecoms infrastructure in the town of Taez.

   It reported that "several" people were killed or injured in the strikes.

   It was not immediately possible to independently verify the toll.

   The British defence ministry said in a statement that its planes launched strikes in "a joint operation with US forces against Houthi military facilities to degrade their ability to persist with their attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden".

   The ministry said intelligence had indicated that two sites near Hodeida had been involved in the attacks on shipping, "with a number of buildings identified as housing drone ground control facilities and providing storage for very long range drones, as well as surface to air weapons".

   Further south, another site "had also been identified as being involved in the command and control of their anti-shipping campaign", it added.

   The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement that a total of 13 Huthi-held sites were targeted, adding the strikes were "necessary to protect our forces, ensure freedom of navigation, and make international waters safer and more secure".

   Since January, the United States and Britain have launched retaliatory strikes on Huthi targets in Yemen in response to the rebels' attacks in the vital waterways.

   But the strikes have done little to deter the Huthis, who have vowed to target US and British vessels as well as all ships heading to Israeli ports.

   - Ships hit -

   Since November, the Huthis have been attacking shipping around the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, saying they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, where Israel has been at war with the militant group Hamas since October 7.

   The Iran-backed Huthis said Wednesday that they had attacked a Greek-owned bulk carrier and several other vessels in response to Israeli strikes on the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah.

   The bulk carrier Laax, a Marshall Islands-flagged and Greek-operated vessel, reported being hit by three missiles, according to CENTCOM and maritime security firms. The vessel was damaged but able to continue its voyage.

   In March, a ship loaded with fertiliser sank in the Gulf of Aden after it was damaged by missiles fired by the Huthis.

   And in November, the rebels seized the vehicle transporter Galaxy Leader and its crew in a helicopter-borne attack.

   The Huthi attacks have prompted some shipping companies to detour around southern Africa to avoid the Red Sea route, which normally carries about 12 percent of global trade.