ADEN, Yemen, April 4 (Xinhua) -- A U.S. airstrike has killed 70 members of the Houthi militia, including prominent field commanders and experts from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Yemen's internationally-recognized government announced Friday.

The strike, carried out on Tuesday, targeted a Houthi gathering in Al-Fazah, a coastal area in the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah, according to Yemen's Minister of Information Moammar al-Eryani.

"A precise air strike by U.S. forces targeted a site used by the Houthis to plan terrorist attacks against commercial vessels and oil tankers in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandab Strait, and the Gulf of Aden," al-Eryani said in a statement posted on social media platform X. The minister added that these Houthi attacks posed "a serious threat to international maritime routes and global trade."

Al-Eryani noted that recent weeks have seen a series of concentrated U.S. airstrikes targeting Houthi positions across several Yemeni provinces. These operations have reportedly destroyed military installations, fortifications, weapons depots, and defense systems, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of militants, including high-ranking leaders.

The Yemeni minister claimed those operations have caused "significant confusion" within Houthi ranks, despite the group's attempts to "conceal their human losses and downplay the repercussions of the strikes through a media blackout."

He characterized the recent operations as "a major shift in the course of the confrontation" with the Houthis and "a strong message that any threat to regional security and maritime corridors will not go unanswered."

The minister indicated that more details about the U.S. airstrike would be released in the coming days.

The Houthi group has not yet officially responded to the government's claims but has asserted that it launched multiple attacks on the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier in the Red Sea in recent days.

The latest such attacks were reported on Friday by Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea in a televised statement. Sarea claimed his group struck the aircraft carrier twice in the past 24 hours with "cruise missiles and drones."

"We are confronting the U.S. aggression against our country and are preparing to confront any potential developments in the coming period," he said.

Meanwhile, Houthi-run al-Masirah TV reported two overnight U.S. airstrikes on Saada province, the main stronghold of the group in northern Yemen. No casualties were reported.

Tensions between the Houthis and the U.S. military have escalated since Washington launched fresh airstrikes on Yemen on March 15 to deter the Houthi group from attacking commercial vessels and warships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

The Houthis said their attacks aim to press U.S.-backed Israel to stop the offensive against the Gaza Strip and allow humanitarian aid into the Palestinian enclave. Enditem

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