US strikes underground Houthi weapons storage location in Yemen

​​​​​​​By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - The US military conducted precision strikes Wednesday against five hardened underground weapons storage locations in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.

"U.S. forces targeted several of the Houthis’ underground facilities housing various weapons components of types that the Houthis have used to target civilian and military vessels throughout the region," defense chief Lloyd Austin said in a statement.

It was a "unique demonstration" of the US' ability to target facilities that "our adversaries seek to keep out of reach, no matter how deeply buried underground, hardened, or fortified," he added.

"The employment of U.S. Air Force B-2 Spirit long-range stealth bombers demonstrate U.S. global strike capabilities to take action against these targets when necessary, anytime, anywhere," he said.

At the direction of President Joe Biden, Austin said he authorized the targeted strikes to further degrade the Houthis’ capability to continue their "destabilizing behavior" and to protect and defend US forces and personnel "in one of the world’s most critical waterways."