US strikes on Yemen capital

Iran-backed Houthi rebels said Saturday that a series of US strikes on territory under their control including the Yemeni capital Sanaa had wounded at least eight people.

"Eight citizens, including two children, were wounded when the American enemy targeted a residential district" west of Al-Rawda in Sanaa, said the Houthi-run Saba news agency.

It cited the Houthi administration's health ministry as the source for what it said was a provisional toll.

An AFP correspondent in Sanaa reported earlier Saturday having heard explosions.

The Houthis, who control large parts of the war-torn country, also reported strikes in other parts of the country, including their stronghold Saada in the north.

They said the fuel port of Ras Issa in the western Hodeida region -- where they say 80 people were killed in strikes just over a week ago -- had also been hit.

The Houthis, part of Iran's "axis of resistance" against Israel and the United States, portray themselves as defenders of Gaza during the Israel-Hamas war.

They have regularly launched missiles and drones at Israel and at cargo vessels plying the key Red Sea trade route.

The US military has since January 2024 been attacking their positions, saying it is targeting the "Iran-backed Houthi terrorists" to stop their attacks.

Since US President Donald Trump took office, those attacks have intensified, with almost daily strikes for the past month.

On Saturday, the Houthis said they had launched a missile and two drones at Israel, where the army said it had intercepted a missile from Yemen and a drone coming from the east.

On Saturday, CENTCOM, the US military command in the region, posted footage from the US aircraft carriers Harry S. Truman and Carl Vinson conducting strikes against the Houthis.

Agence France-Presse