British Armed Forces Minister James Heappey told Radio Times on Friday that overnight strikes by Britain and the United States on Houthi military targets in Yemen were in self-defense.
Heappey said, “Our action and the Americans’ last night were self-defense against further attacks on our warships while they were performing their legitimate duties.” He emphasized, “What happened should not be seen as anything more than an act of self-defense,” noting that “there are no plans for more British missions currently.”
The British Minister indicated that a larger official assessment of the damage would be conducted, adding, “We are confident that the targets we identified have been successfully hit.” Earlier on Friday, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced that the US and British strikes against the Houthi rebels, who have intensified their attacks on ships in the Red Sea in recent weeks, were “limited, necessary, and proportionate.”
Sunak said in a statement, “Despite repeated warnings from the international community, the Houthis continued to execute attacks in the Red Sea, again this week against British and American warships.” He added, “This cannot continue… Thus, we took limited, necessary, and proportionate actions in self-defense.”
Sunak also mentioned on Thursday night into Friday that the Royal Air Force conducted “strikes against military sites in Yemen used by the Houthi rebels.” He continued, stating that Britain “will always defend the freedom of navigation and the free flow of trade,” describing the Houthis’ actions as “irresponsible,” “destabilizing,” and causing “significant disruption to a vital trade route,” thus “increasing the prices of raw materials.”
British Defense Minister Grant Shapps, speaking on the “X” platform, said that four Typhoon fighters, alongside the American forces, conducted “precise strikes” against two Houthi sites. He added, “The threat to innocent lives and global trade has become so significant that this action became more than necessary. It was our duty to protect the ships and the freedom of navigation.” Britain and the United States launched air and sea strikes on Houthi military targets in Yemen in response to the movement’s attacks on ships in the Red Sea, representing a regional expansion of the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
