U.S. air strikes hit Houthi strongholds in Yemen, kill ISIS leader in Syria

U.S. air strikes blew up Houthi strongholds in Yemen on Saturday just days after an American military operation killed an ISIS leader in Syria.

The operations were announced by Central Command (CENTCOM) in Tampa as military leaders sought to degrade terrorist assets across the Middle East ahead of President-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House next month.

The strikes in Syria occurred Friday in territory previously held by the Syrian government and Russia before the collapse of the Assad regime. They killed ISIS leader Abu Yusif aka Mahmud and another operative, officials said.

“As stated before, the United States — working with allies and partners in the region — will not allow ISIS to take advantage of the current situation in Syria and reconstitute,” Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla said.

“ISIS has the intent to break out of detention the over 8,000 ISIS operatives currently being held in facilities in Syria. We will aggressively target these leaders and operatives, including those trying to conduct operations external to Syria,” he added.

On Saturday, Air Force and Navy fighter jets struck a missile storage facility and a command-and-control facility operated by Iran-backed Houthis in Sana’a, Yemen and engaged enemy drones and missiles, official said.

“CENTCOM forces conducted the deliberate strikes to disrupt and degrade Houthi operations, such as attacks against U.S. Navy warships and merchant vessels in the Southern Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb, and Gulf of Aden,” CENTCOM said.

“The strike reflects CENTCOM’s ongoing commitment to protect U.S. and coalition personnel, regional partners, and international shipping,” it added