HOUTHIS VOW TO RESPOND AFTER THE JOINT US-UK EFFORT STRIKES 36 TARGETS IN YEMEN

 The Houthis vow to respond after US and UK strike 36 targets across 13 locations in Yemen. The Houthis in Yemen, who are backed by Iran, started targeting commercial vessels in the Red Sea in November, disrupting global supply chains

1. Shipping companies have stopped using the Red Sea, which usually carries almost 15% of global seaborne trade, and are using a much longer route around southern Africa instead
2. The Houthis say they are targeting Israeli-linked ships in solidarity with the Palestinians; however, many attacked vessels have had no connection to Israel
3. UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said the latest strikes were "not an escalation", and the Houthis' attacks on vessels in the Red Sea were "illegal and unacceptable"
4. The joint strikes come after the US targeted 85 locations in Syria and Iraq on Friday in response to a deadly drone attack on a US military base in Jordan

5. Satellite images show US damage to ammunition storage in Syria

   Let's take a step back from the strikes on the Houthis for a moment, to talk about Friday's strikes on targets in Syria and Iraq.

   On Friday 2 February, the US-led coalition hit a number of targets in the two countries.

   Among them, an important ammunition storage facility in Eastern Syria.

   BBC Verify has been analysing a series of satellite images from the region and has located the site in Ayyash, about 10km (6 miles) north of Deir al-Zour city.

   An image from 1 February shows the sites, composed of over 20 buildings, in good condition. While an image from 3 February shows the same site now completely destroyed.

   This site is well known to the US intelligence as it is connected to Iran-backed groups. The site had already been targeted by US strikes in August 2022.

   Iran denounces Yemen strikes

   Iran says the US and UK strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen contradict the countries' claims of wanting to avoid a wider Middle East conflict.

   Iran warns that further strikes are "a threat to international peace and security" following a third round of strikes targeting the Iran-backed rebel group, in response to its repeated attacks on international vessels in the Red Sea.

   The strikes are "in clear contradiction with the repeated claims of Washington and London that they do not want the expansion of war and conflict in the region," Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson, Nasser Kanaani, says in a statement

   The statement adds that the US and the UK are "fuelling chaos, disorder, insecurity and instability" in the region by supporting Israel.

   

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6. Cameron: Houthis 'must stop' Red Sea attacks

   

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   UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron says the Houthi attacks on international shipping "must stop" following the latest UK-US strikes.

   This third round of joint action comes after "repeated warnings" for the Iran-backed group to cease their attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, he writes in a post on X.

   Cameron adds: "Their reckless actions are putting innocent lives at risk, threatening the freedom of navigation and destabilising the region."

7. THIS AND MANY MORE UPDATES AND REPORTS AT: US and UK strike Iran-backed Houthi targets in Yemen - live updates - BBC News