Bombs shatter houses in Yemen capital

Associated Press

SANAA, Yemen

Saudi-led airstrikes hit weapons caches held by Iran-backed Shiite rebels, touching off massive explosions Monday in Yemen’s capital that killed at least 19 people and buried scores of others under the rubble of flattened homes.

The U.S. Navy, meanwhile, has dispatched the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt toward the waters off Yemen to join other American ships prepared to intercept any Iranian vessels carrying weapons to the rebels, U.S. officials said.

After the coalition airstrikes, mushroom clouds rose over the mountainous outskirts of Sanaa, where the arms depots are located. The Fag Atan area has been targeted several times since March 26, the start of the air campaign against the rebels known as Houthis.

“It was like the doors of hell opened all of a sudden,” said Mohammed Sarhan, whose home is less than 1 mile from the site. “I felt the house lift up and fall.”

The blasts — among the most powerful in Sanaa since the airstrikes began — deposited a layer of soot on the top floors of buildings in the Yemeni capital and left streets littered with glass. Anti-aircraft fire rattled in response.

One bomb hit near the Iranian Embassy in Sanaa, drawing a sharp rebuke from Tehran.

Saudi Arabia and several of its allies, mainly Gulf Arab countries, have been trying to drive back the rebels, who seized Sanaa in September and have overrun many other northern provinces with the help of security forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh. The U.S. supports the Saudi campaign.

Western governments and Sunni Arab countries say the Houthis get their arms from Iran. Tehran and the rebels deny that, although the Islamic Republic has provided political and humanitarian support to the Shiite group.

The Houthis and Saleh’s troops also have advanced on the southern port of Aden, Yemen’s main sea hub, forcing President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi to flee the impoverished but strategic country last month. The Houthis and their allies have been trying to take over Aden for weeks.

The announcement that the USS Theodore Roosevelt is heading for the region comes amid reports that a convoy of Iranian ships may be headed toward Yemen to arm the Houthis.

There are about nine U.S. ships in the region, including cruisers and destroyers carrying teams that can board and search other vessels. The U.S. officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the ship movement on the record.

The carrier’s deployment follows last week’s approval of a U.N. Security Council resolution that imposed an arms embargo on three Houthi leaders, two key supporters, Yemen’s ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh and his son, and those acting on their behalf. The resolution passed in a 14-0 vote with Russia abstaining.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest would not comment specifically on any Navy movements in Yemeni waters, but said the U.S. has concerns about Iran’s “continued support for the Houthis.

“We have seen evidence that the Iranians are supplying weapons and other armed support to the Houthis in Yemen,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said. “That support will only contribute to greater violence in that country. These are exactly the kind of destabilizing activities that we have in mind when we raise concerns about Iran’s destabilizing activities in the Middle East.”