At least 74 people were killed in a U.S. airstrike on a fuel terminal in Yemen, according to the Houthi rebel group, marking the deadliest attack in Washington’s 15-month military campaign against the group.
The U.S. military said the strikes targeted the Ras Issa fuel port on Yemen’s Red Sea coast in an effort to cut off funding and supplies to the Houthis, who control much of the country. The port is a key infrastructure point in Yemen, one of the poorest countries on the Arabian Peninsula.
Footage aired by Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV showed massive fires lighting up the night, following what has become an escalation of U.S. attacks under President Donald Trump.
Anees Alasbahi, a spokesperson for the Houthi health ministry, said rescue efforts were still underway and warned the casualty count could rise. “So far, 74 people have been confirmed dead and 171 injured,” he said. These figures could not be independently verified by AFP.
In response to the U.S. attack, the Houthis claimed to have launched missiles at Israel and two American aircraft carriers. The Israeli military reported intercepting a missile fired from Yemen earlier that day.
In Sanaa and other cities, crowds gathered to protest the strikes, chanting anti-U.S. and anti-Israel slogans. “This ongoing American aggression will only provoke more retaliatory operations,” said Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree during a demonstration in the capital.
A Message to Iran?
The timing of the strikes—just ahead of U.S.-Iran nuclear talks in Rome—has raised speculation that they were meant as a signal to Tehran. “These military actions clearly serve as a message to Iran,” said Mohammed Albasha, a U.S.-based political analyst.
Since January 2024, the U.S. has stepped up airstrikes on Houthi positions, particularly after the group resumed attacks on Red Sea shipping routes, citing solidarity with Palestinians following the outbreak of the Gaza conflict in October 2023. A temporary ceasefire had paused the attacks, but hostilities have resumed.
U.S. Central Command (Centcom) stated that the strike was meant to “eliminate a critical fuel source for Iran-backed Houthi terrorists and deny them illegal revenue that has supported over a decade of regional violence.”
The current campaign escalated in March with a strike that killed 53 people.
Al-Masirah broadcast dramatic scenes early Friday showing flames and smoke billowing over the port. Survivors were seen in hospital beds, some with burns, recounting how the area was engulfed in fire. “We ran as the explosions came one after another — then everything went up in flames,” one man said.
Escalation in the Red Sea
Ras Issa and other sites in Yemen have also been targeted by Israeli airstrikes, most recently in January and earlier in September, which Israel said were aimed at military infrastructure.
Iran condemned the latest U.S. strikes as “barbaric,” while Hamas called them “a flagrant act of aggression.”
The U.S. intensified its bombing campaign last month after Houthi threats to restart attacks on international shipping in response to Israel’s blockade of Gaza aid.
“The message is clear: the U.S. is hitting not just Houthi fighters but also their economic backbone,” said Albasha.
The Houthi attacks have disrupted shipping in the Red Sea, a critical maritime route that typically handles 12% of global trade, forcing many vessels to reroute around southern Africa, significantly increasing transport costs.
In a related development, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce accused Chinese satellite firm Chang Guang Satellite Technology Company of assisting Houthi forces by supplying them with satellite imagery used in attacks on U.S. assets.
