Houthis blame U.S. for airstrike they say killed at least 68 people at migrant detention centre
U.S. in recent weeks has stepped up airstrikes on Iran-backed Houthi rebels
Yemen's Houthi rebels said on Monday that a U.S. airstrike hit a prison holding African migrants, killing at least 68 people and wounding 47 others.
The strike in Yemen's Saada governorate could raise questions about the U.S. campaign, known as "Operation Rough Rider," which has been targeting Houthi rebels. The strikes have drawn controversy in Washington after Donald Trump administration officials discussed sensitive and likely classified details about a previous attack on the Signal messaging app.
The American military has acknowledged carrying out over 800 individual strikes in its month-long campaign. A statement earlier in the weekend from the U.S. said "Operation Rough Rider" had "killed hundreds of Houthi fighters and numerous Houthi leaders," including those associated with its missile and drone program. It did not identify any of those officials.
"To preserve operational security, we have intentionally limited disclosing details of our ongoing or future operations," Central Command said. "We are very deliberate in our operational approach, but will not reveal specifics about what we've done or what we will do."
It did not immediately respond to questions from The Associated Press about the alleged strike in Saada.
The U.S. is targeting the Houthis because of the group's attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, a crucial global trade route, and on Israel. The Houthis are also the last militant group in Iran's self-described Axis of Resistance that is capable of regularly attacking Israel.
"Iran undoubtedly continues to provide support to the Houthis," the statement said. "The Houthis can only continue to attack our forces with the backing of the Iranian regime."
"We will continue to ratchet up the pressure until the objective is met, which remains the restoration of freedom of navigation and American deterrence in the region," it added.
While the hostilities have been ongoing, the Trump administration has started negotiations with the Houthis' main benefactor, Iran, over Tehran's rapidly advancing nuclear program.
The U.S. is conducting strikes on Yemen from its two aircraft carriers in the region — the USS Harry S. Truman in the Red Sea and the USS Carl Vinson in the Arabian Sea. On April 18, an American strike on the Ras Isa fuel port killed at least 74 people and wounded 171 others in the deadliest-known attack of the American campaign.
Meanwhile, U.S. airstrikes overnight targeting Yemen's capital, Sanaa, killed at least eight people, the Houthis said.
Migrant centre hit by airstrike 3 years ago
Graphic footage aired by the Houthis' al-Masirah satellite news channel showed what appeared to be dead bodies and others wounded at the site. The Houthi-run Interior Ministry said some 115 migrants had been detained at the site.
Footage from the site analyzed by AP suggested some kind of explosion took place there, with its cement walls seemingly peppered by debris fragments and the wounds suffered by those there. A woman's voice, soft in the footage, can be heard repeating the start of a prayer in Arabic: "In the name of God."
Ethiopians and other African migrants for years have landed in Yemen, braving the war-torn nation to try to reach Saudi Arabia for work. The Houthi rebels allegedly make tens of thousands of dollars a week smuggling migrants over the border.
Migrants from Ethiopia have found themselves detained, abused and even killed in the yearslong war that began in 2015 between a Saudi-led coalition and the Houthi rebels.
Monday's alleged strike recalled a similar strike by the Saudi-led coalition back in 2022 on the same compound, which caused a collapse, killing 66 detainees and wounding 113 others, a United Nations report later said. The Houthis shot dead 16 detainees who fled after the strike and wounded another 50, the UN said.
With files from CBC News