The command added that "this action will protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure for U.S. Navy vessels and merchant vessels."
"On Feb. 4, at approximately 4 a.m. (Sanaa time) [01:00 GMT], U.S. Central Command forces conducted a strike in self-defense against a Houthi anti-ship cruise missile prepared to launch against ships in the Red Sea. U.S. forces identified the cruise missile in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen and determined it presented an imminent threat to U.S. Navy ships and merchant vessels in the region," CENTCOM said on X.
Yemen’s Houthi military organization vowed to attack any Israeli-linked ships passing through the Red Sea in response for the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip. US reacted by establishing multinational operation to secure navigation in the region and launching joint strikes with UK against Houthi positions.
Moscow slammed US actions as violation of international law.
"US airstrikes on Yemen are another example of the Anglo-Saxons’ distortion of UN Security Council resolutions and complete disregard for international law in the name of escalating the situation in the region for their own destructive purposes," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.