The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced Wednesday that U.S. forces conducted retaliatory strikes against Houthi weapons storage facilities in Yemen over the weekend.
The facilities were all located in Houthi-controlled territories and housed a variety of advanced conventional weapons used by Iranian-backed Houthis to target U.S. and other international military, as well as civilian vessels moving through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
U.S. Air Force and Navy assets, including the F-35C, were used during the operation. This marked the first time the F-35C stealth strike fighter was ever used in combat, a U.S. defense official told Fox News.
The F-35C strike fighters were among other assets involved in the operation that took off from the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier in the Gulf of Aden.
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A Houthi target is destroyed by U.S. forces in Yemen, Nov. 9. (CENTCOM)
CENTCOM said the targeted operation was conducted in response to repeated and unlawful attacks by Houthi rebels on international commercial shipping vessels, as well as U.S., coalition, and merchant vessels in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden.
The strikes also aimed to degrade the group’s ability to threaten partners in the region.
Additional assets involved in the operation included U.S. Navy destroyers USS Stockdale (DDG 106), USS Spruance (DDG 111), along with U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy aircraft, which successfully defeated a range of Houthi-launched weapons while transiting the Bab al-Mandeb Strait.
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The USS Abraham Lincoln is equipped with F-35c steak strike fighters. (U.S. Central Command Public Affairs)
“These forces successfully engaged and defeated eight one-way attack uncrewed aerial systems (OWA UAS), five anti-ship ballistic missiles (ASBMs), and four anti-ship cruise missiles (ASCMs), ensuring the safety of the ships and their personnel,” CENTCOM said.
U.S. personnel were not injured, CENTCOM added, and U.S. facilities were not damaged in the operation.
Houthi rebel fighters march during a rally of support for the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and against the U.S. strikes on Yemen. (AP Photo)
CENTCOM said the actions taken over the weekend reflect the ongoing efforts of its forces to protect U.S. personnel, regional partners and international shipping, while also maintaining security and stability in the region.
The announcement comes days after another operation that took place on Monday, in which CENTCOM forces conducted retaliatory strikes against Iran-associated targets in Syria.
“U.S. Centcom forces conducted strikes [Monday] against nine targets and two locations associated with Iranian groups in Syria, in response to several attacks on U.S. personnel in Syria over a 24-hour period,” Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder said during a press briefing Tuesday. “These strikes will degrade the Iranian-backed groups ability to plan and launch future attacks on U.S. and coalition forces who are in the region to conduct to defeat ISIS operations.”
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Like the targeted operations over the weekend, CENTCOM conducted strikes in Syria in response to several attacks on U.S. forces.
Fox News Digital’s Andrea Margolis contributed to this report.