Fears of wider war grow as US, UK strike Yemen

US and British warplanes, ships and submarines launched dozens of air strikes across Yemen overnight in retaliation against Iran-backed Houthi forces for attacks on Red Sea shipping.

The air strikes add to escalating fears of wider conflict in the region, where violence involving Tehran-aligned groups in Yemen as well as in Lebanon, Iraq and Syria has surged since the Israel-Hamas conflict began in early October.

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Hamas said it will hold Britain and the United States "responsible for the repercussions on regional security."

The US, Britain and eight other allies said the strikes aimed to "de-escalate tensions". But Iran and numerous other countries in the region and beyond condemned the Western action or voiced concern that unrest could worsen.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described the strikes as disproportionate" and said: "It is as if they aspire to turn the Red Sea into a bloodbath."

News of the air strikes sent oil prices up four percent. Bjarne Schieldrop, chief commodities analyst at SEB bank, cited market fears that "the region is on an unpredictable escalating path".

The Huthis have carried out a growing number of attacks on what they deem to be Israeli-linked shipping in the key Red Sea international trade route since the Israeli offensive on Gaza Strip began.

Some 12 percent of global maritime trade normally passes through the Bab al-Mandeb strait, but since mid-November the amount of shipping containers has dropped by 70 percent, according to maritime experts.

The rebels have controlled a major part of Yemen since a civil war erupted there in 2014 and are part of a regional Iran-backed "axis of resistance" against Israel and its allies.

Yesterday's strikes targeted an airbase, airports and a military camp, the Huthis' Al-Masirah TV station said, with AFP correspondents and witnesses reporting they could hear heavy strikes in Hodeida and Sanaa.

The British Ministry of Defence said four RAF Typhoons hit a site in northwestern Yemen in Bani, used to launch attack drones, as well as an airfield in Abbs from where cruise missiles and drones were operated over the Red Sea.

"Our country was subjected to a massive aggressive attack by American and British" forces, said Hussein al-Ezzi, the rebels' deputy foreign minister.

According to official Huthi media, he added the two countries "will have to prepare to pay a heavy price".

US President Joe Biden called the strikes a "defensive action" after the Red Sea attacks and said he "will not hesitate" to order further military action if needed.

With fighter jets and Tomahawk missiles, 60 targets at 16 Huthi locations were hit by more than 100 precision-guided munitions, US Central Command said in a statement.

Huthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said at least five people had been killed.

Nasser Kanani, spokesman for Iran's foreign ministry, said the Western strikes "will have no result other than fuelling insecurity and instability in the region", while "diverting the world's attention" from Gaza.

An AFP journalist said hundreds of people rallied in Tehran against the US, Britain and Israel while voicing support for Gazans and Yemenis.

Protesters also marched in Yemen's Gulf neighbour, Bahrain.

Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry said Riyadh "is following with great concern the military operations" and called for "self-restraint and avoiding escalation".

Oman, a mediator in attempts to end Yemen's civil war, said it "has warned several times about the risk of the extension of the conflict in the region".

Iraq and Syria voiced similar concerns.

Further afield, China said it was "concerned about the escalation of tensions in the Red Sea" and Moscow condemned the "illegitimate" strikes.

Britain's defence ministry released footage of Royal Air Force jets returning to their Cyprus base after the mission, and US Centcom video showed warplanes apparently taking off from a sea-based carrier.

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said the strikes "targeted sites associated with the Huthis' unmanned aerial vehicle, ballistic and cruise missile, and coastal radar and air surveillance capabilities".

Washington in December announced a maritime security initiative, Operation Prosperity Guardian, to protect shipping in the Red Sea.

On Tuesday, however, the Houthis launched what London called their most significant attack yet, with US and British forces shooting down 18 drones and three missiles.

The intensifying attacks have caused shipping companies to divert around South Africa's Cape of Good Hope, affecting trade flows at a time when supply strains are putting upward pressure on inflation globally.

• US says 60 targets hit with more than 100 precision strikes 
• Iran, Russia, Turkey, Arab states condemn strike; US defends 'defensive action'
• Oil prices up four percent