Wednesday Briefing

The U.S. struck Houthi targets in Yemen

The U.S. carried out a third military strike against Houthi ballistic missiles in Yemen, the U.S. military said. The strike destroyed four missiles that the Pentagon’s Central Command said posed an imminent threat to merchant vessels and Navy ships traveling through the Red Sea and nearby waters.

The strike came on the third day in a row that the Houthis defied the Biden administration and its allies by firing missiles at passing ships. The group damaged a Greek-owned cargo vessel yesterday and a U.S.-owned commercial ship on Monday, after attempting to hit a U.S. warship the day before.

The Biden administration now faces difficult choices, according to analysts: ordering another blitz of strikes, which would risk widening the war further, or settling for more limited exchanges that would not necessarily resolve the threat to commercial ships. Houthi leaders say they will continue their attacks, vowing solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.

Quotable: “We’re not looking for a war; we’re not looking to expand this,” John Kirby, the National Security Council spokesman, said, adding, “We will continue to defend against them and counter them as appropriate.”