The Yemeni information minister announced that 70 Iran-backed Houthis and members of the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) were killed in a US airstrike on Tuesday, claims denied by the IRGC, which called it “false news”.
The IRGC affiliated Tasnim News Agency called the Saturday announcement by Muammar Al-Eryani "psychological warfare”. Al-Eryani is the minister of Yemen's official government, which is at war with the Houthis.
"It seems that this false news has been published in the context of psychological warfare and in order to push the region towards an all-out war, while officials and military commanders of the Islamic Republic of Iran have repeatedly announced that the Yemeni Ansarullah forces are fighting the US and Israel completely independently,” Tasnim wrote.
Al-Eryani said in a press statement that the attack targeted a point that was "used to plan terrorist attacks against commercial ships and tankers in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandab, and the Gulf of Aden” amid the Houthis’ maritime blockade.
The Houthis maintain a narrative of victory when publicizing information on engagement with US military action.
A press statement this week said: "We are in an advanced position on the maritime front, and the American aircraft carrier 'Truman' is in a constant state of retreat, with pursuit ongoing,” the US vessel on the frontline of the maritime conflict.
The US has carried out multiple airstrikes across Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen since last month as it cracks down on the Iran-backed group which has been imposing the blockade since November 2023 in the wake of the Gaza war.
The group began the blockade targeting Israeli-linked ships, claiming to be working in allegiance with Hamas in Gaza but has since targeted multiple international vessels and killed international seamen.
US President Donald Trump has warned that any firing by the Houthis in Yemen will be directly attributed to the Islamic Republic of Iran and will have serious consequences for Tehran.
"From this moment on, every shot fired by the Houthis will be considered a shot fired by Iranian weapons and leadership. Iran will be held responsible, it will bear the consequences, and these consequences will be serious," he wrote in a message on his social media account, Truth Social.
In spite of denials from Tehran that they are controlling the group, Trump continues to attribute blame to Iran for funding and arming the group, the blockade initiated on the orders of Supreme Leader Ali Al Khamenei.
”Let no one be fooled! The hundreds of attacks carried out by the Houthis, these evil thugs and thugs based in Yemen who are hated by the Yemeni people, all originate from and are directed by Iran,” Trump said.
According to the Associated Press this week, satellite images show the deployment of at least six nuclear-capable B-2 Spirit bombers to Camp Thunder Bay on the island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, which is within striking distance of both Iran and Yemen.
Tensions also remain high between Iran and the US over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program.
The B-2 would be crucial in potentially bombing Iran’s underground nuclear sites and has been used in combat to target the Houthis in the past.
