Shafaq News/ On Thursday, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) declared that it had conducted missile strikes against Houthis in Yemen in "self-defense.".

"On Feb. 21, between 12:00 a.m. and 6:45 p.m. (Sanaa time), US Central Command (CENTCOM) forces conducted four self-defense strikes against seven mobile Houthi Anti-Ship Cruise Missiles and one mobile Anti-Ship Ballistic Missile launcher," CENTCOM said in a statement, explaining that these missiles were prepared to launch towards the Red Sea.

The US Command also reported that its forces shot down a "one-way attack unmanned aircraft system (UAS) in self-defense."

The Houthis, also known as Ansarallah, started their operations in the Red Sea, preventing all Israeli or Israeli-related from passing through Bab Al-Mandeb.

The group said that all its operations are in solidarity with "the oppressed Palestinian people, who until this moment are subjected to aggression and siege."

The Yemeni group, which controls most of Yemen, including the vital capital, Sanaa, is a key player in the region and a main part of the Iran-backed Axis of Resistance. This umbrella includes Iraqi factions, Lebanese Hezbollah, and Palestinian factions.

Since the beginning of the Israeli aggression against Gaza, the US has expressed solidarity with Tel Aviv, providing it with unconditional military, political, and financial support.

Earlier this week, Washington used veto power to quash Algeria's draft resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

The US administration repeatedly said that it did not want the war to be expanded, especially after its interests were attacked in Iraq and Syria by the Iraqi Resistance in Iraq. Yet, the blatant support for Israel put the US administration in a critical position, facing massive protests in different states, where President Joe Biden was unwelcome, including Michigan, the home of the large Palestinian, Lebanese, Yemeni, and Iraqi communities