White House National Security Council Press Secretary John Kirby said Friday that Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis “still have some offensive capability” despite repeated waves of U.S. military attacks against the rebels. ” he said.
The day after Kirby made his comments, President Biden was asked by reporters about the effectiveness of the airstrikes, saying, “They're working, so are they deterring the Houthis? No. Are we going to continue? Yes. ” he said.
Kirby told reporters at a White House press briefing on Friday that the Pentagon conducts assessments after each attack to determine how successful they were.
“We believe they have had a positive impact in reducing some of the Houthis' capabilities,” Kirby said. “But obviously, the president alluded to this yesterday, they still have some offensive capability, and we will continue to take the actions we deem necessary to protect ourselves.”
Biden administration misses the mark by redesignating Iran-backed Houthis as terrorists, critics say
Houthi supporters rallied in Sanaa, Yemen, on Friday, January 19, to denounce the United States' designation of the group as a “Specially Designated Global Terrorist.” (Reuters/Khaled Abdullah)
Kirby also revealed that this morning, US forces in the region “conducted three successful self-defense strikes” against the Houthis.
“This is the fourth preemptive action taken by the U.S. military in the past week against a Houthi missile launcher, in this case an anti-ship missile, that was ready to launch an attack,” it added.
US military attacks two Houthi anti-ship missiles, two defense officials say
Houthi fighters and tribesmen rally against US and UK attacks on Houthi-run military facilities near Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, January 14, 2024. (AP photo) (AP)
Kirby once again warned the Houthis to stop attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea.
A plane takes off to join the US-led coalition in air strikes on military targets in Yemen, targeting Iranian-backed Houthi militias targeting international shipping in the Red Sea. This screenshot is from an undisclosed location. Video released on January 12th. (U.S. Central Command, via X/Reuters)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“They can make that choice. Obviously, they made the opposite choice,” he said. “So we have a choice to make, and we have options available to us. We will continue to explore those options. Obviously, the options that we have and will continue to take. One of them is in the military field if necessary.''
