The intense campaign of airstrikes in Yemen under US President Donald Trump, targeting the rebels over their attacks on shipping in Mideast waters stemming from the Israel-Hamas war, has killed at least 67 people, according to casualty figures released by the Houthis.
The campaign shows no signs of stopping as the Trump administration again linked its airstrikes on the Iranian-backed Houthis to an effort to pressure Iran over its rapidly advancing nuclear program.
While so far giving no specifics about the campaign and its targets, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt put the overall number of strikes on Tuesday US time at more than 200.
"Iran is incredibly weakened as a result of these attacks, and we have seen they have taken out Houthi leaders," Leavitt said.
"They've taken out critical members who were launching strikes on naval ships and on commercial vessels and this operation will not stop until the freedom of navigation in this region is restored."
The Houthis haven't acknowledged the loss of any of its leadership so far — and the US hasn't identified any official by name.
However, messages released by the leak of a Signal conversation between Trump administration officials and their public comments suggest a leader in the rebels' missile forces had been targeted.
A likely US airstrike targeted what the Houthis described as a "water project" in Hodeida governorate, killing four people and wounding others.
Other strikes into Wednesday targeted Hajjah, Saada and Sanaa governorates, the rebels said.
Into Wednesday night, the Houthis said some 17 strikes hit Saada, with a person being killed in a strike in Hodeida and another at a telecommunication site in Ibb governorate.
The rebels say they've continued to launch attacks against US warships in the Red Sea, namely the aircraft carrier USS Harry S Truman, which is carrying out the majority of the strikes on the Houthis.
No warship has been struck yet, but the US Navy has described the Houthi fire as the most intense combat its sailors have faced since World War II.
The aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, now in Asia, is on its way to the Middle East to back up the Truman.
Early on Wednesday, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said that "additional squadrons and other air assets" would be deployed to the region, without elaborating.
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