The US has carried out a series of attacks against the Houthis in Yemen, targeting five underground weapons storage facilities using B-2 stealth bombers.

Here’s what you need to know about the attack:

Who are the Houthis and why is the US attacking them? The Houthis are part of an Iranian-backed alliance of militant groups in the Middle East.

The alliance, which includes Yemen, Syria, Gaza and Iraq, has been attacking Israel since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas. The Houthis say they will not stop attacking Israel and its allies until a ceasefire is reached in the Palestinian enclave.

Although they do not pose as much of a threat to Israel and the US as other Iranian allies such as Hamas and Hezbollah, the Houthis have been attacking ships in the Red Sea, one of the world’s busiest waterways, for months in response to the war. in Gaza.

Austin said he authorized the U.S. strikes at President Joe Biden’s direction to “further degrade” the Houthis’ capabilities after more than a year of attacks by the Houthis on U.S. and international ships in the region. The facilities contained “several weapon components” used to target ships in the Middle East, the defense minister said.

Why did the US use B-2 bombers? Thursday’s attack marked the first time since the start of the war in Gaza that the US used the B-2 stealth bomber to attack the Houthis in Yemen. The B-2 is a much larger platform than the fighter jets used to date to attack Houthi facilities and weapons, and can carry a much heavier payload of bombs.

Austin said U.S. forces used the B-2 bomber to show that the U.S. can attack facilities that “try to keep our adversaries out of reach, no matter how deeply underground, hardened or fortified.”

How have the Houthis responded? A Houthi spokesperson said: “America will pay the price for its aggression against Yemen, and as we have said before, its aggression will not deter Yemen from its position in support of Gaza.”