UN chief gravely concerned as U.S. airstrikes kill dozens in Yemen
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is “gravely concerned” over air strikes by the United States in Yemen, a spokesman stated Saturday, following rebels there reporting that the attacks killed around 80 people and injured 150.
Guterres “is seriously alarmed by the air strikes carried out by the United States on 17 and 18 April against and around Yemen’s Ras Issa port, which reportedly left dozens of civilians dead, among them five humanitarian staff injured,” spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.”
The United States has conducted 13 air strikes on Hodeidah’s airport and port, the Houthi-aligned TV channel Al Masirah reports, two days after a US air strike destroyed the Ras Isa port, also in Hodeidah, killing at least 80 people and injuring over 150.
Al Masirah also on Saturday reported that three individuals were killed and four were injured as a result of a US attack on al-Thawra, Bani Matar, and al-Safiah districts in the capital city Sanaa. The Houthis have vowed to conduct “more operations” in spite of the continued US attacks.
US President Donald Trump‘s government declared a significant military campaign against the Houthis some weeks ago. It explained that the air strikes are meant to compel the Houthis to desist from threatening vessels plying the Red Sea on a vital route to international commerce.
Since November 2023, the group has been allegedly carrying out over 100 attacks against ships it claims are connected to Israel as a retaliatory measure following Israel’s Gaza war and as a show of solidarity with Palestinians.
The bombings of Ras Issa were meant to sever supplies and finances to the Huthi rebels occupying vast portions of the poorest nation on the Arabian Peninsula, according to the US military. The attack was Washington’s deadliest yet in its 15-month war against the Iran-aligned group.
Guterres voiced concerns over destruction of the port and “potential oil spills into the Red Sea,” Dujarric added in a statement. He also urged the Huthis to cease their ongoing missile and drone attacks on both Israel and shipping in the Red Sea “immediately.”
The US military has pounded the Huthis with almost daily air raids over the last month in an attempt to finally crush their attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. The Huthis claim their attacks are in protest at Israel’s blockade of aid to Gaza, where it is fighting a bloody war against Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Dujarric added that Guterres was “deeply troubled” by the risk of further escalation in the region, and that he called on all parties to “exercise utmost restraint.”
