US, UK airstrike hit Yemen's port city

Sanaa, Feb 20: The US-British maritime coalition launched an airstrike on the Yemeni Red Sea port city of Hodeidah, the media reported.

The strike hit in the area of al-Jabanah in the city, the Houthi-run al-Masirah satellite TV channel said on Monday, without providing further details or casualties.

Local residents said on social media platforms that the airstrike hit an empty area, Xinhua news agency reported.

So far, there have been no comments yet from the US-British coalition.

The strike came following the Houthis claimed responsibility for carrying out a missile attack against a British cargo vessel in the southern Red Sea.

Britain's Maritime Trade Operations agency said the attack badly damaged the vessel, and its crew had abandoned it.

On Saturday, the US Central Command said it has conducted "five successful self-defence strikes against three mobile anti-ship cruise missiles, one unmanned underwater vessel, and one unmanned surface vessel" in the Houthis-controlled areas of Yemen.

The US Central Command said its strikes since January aimed to undermine Houthi military capabilities.

However, Houthis, in response, increased their attacks in what they said in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.

Houthi group has been controlling the strategic Red Sea port city of Hodeidah since the 2018 UN-brokered Stockholm Agreement, which was backed by the US and Britain, forcing the Yemeni internationally recognised government out.