Suspected U.S. airstrikes hit the area around Yemen’s Red Sea port city of Hodeidah on 2025-04-09, killing at least eight people and wounding 16, according to the Houthi rebels and AP.
The AP report said the strikes centered on Hodeidah’s al-Hawak district, which includes the city’s airport area and has been used by the Houthis in past attacks on shipping in the Red Sea. Footage aired by the Houthi-run al-Masirah channel showed rescuers carrying wounded people to ambulances and searching the site by flashlight. The rebels said a home in a residential neighborhood had been hit.
The U.S. military’s Central Command did not immediately acknowledge the strike, continuing a pattern the AP report said has characterized the current campaign. The White House has said more than 200 strikes have been carried out so far. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the U.S. was not going to relent, while Central Command later said it was intentionally limiting details for operational security.
The strikes were not confined to Hodeidah. The Houthis said other attacks hit Amran governorate north of Sanaa, targeting telecommunication equipment, and further strikes reportedly hit sites near Sanaa, Dhamar and Ibb. AP said those strikes wounded three people in one of the other governorates. The U.S. did not confirm the individual targets, but the reporting shows the campaign has expanded across a wider area of Houthi-held territory.
This is part of a broader U.S. effort launched on March 15 against the Houthis, who have attacked shipping in response to the Israel-Hamas war. The AP report noted that the new campaign appears more extensive than the one under President Joe Biden, with strikes aimed not only at launch sites but also at ranking personnel and city targets. The operation is also tied by Washington to pressure on Iran over its nuclear program.
The Houthi account said the U.S. campaign had already killed at least 81 people before this strike. AP reported that Houthi claims are difficult to verify independently, but the pattern of repeated U.S. strikes, lack of detailed American disclosure and footage of civilian damage make the Hodeidah attack part of a visible and escalating air war.
The strategic value of Hodeidah helps explain why the city is repeatedly hit. It is a key port on the Red Sea and a transit point in a conflict that has spread well beyond Yemen’s borders. Each new strike raises the risk of retaliation, more civilian casualties and further disruption to maritime traffic in one of the world’s most sensitive shipping corridors.
