2 killed, 10 injured in US airstrikes on Yemen's Houthi-held capital: Report
Sanaa: US airstrikes on Yemen's Houthi-held capital Sanaa overnight killed two people and wounded 10 others, Houthi-controlled health authorities said on Sunday.
The strikes targeted multiple locations across Sanaa, the authorities said, adding that two women and three children were among the injured, Xinhua news agency reported.
All the wounded were taken to local hospitals for treatment.
Houthi-run al-Masirah TV reported that US forces carried out additional strikes in several northern provinces and said three US strikes also hit the Galaxy Leader, a cargo vessel seized by the Houthis in November 2023 during attacks on Red Sea shipping linked to Israel.
No casualties were reported from the strikes outside Sanaa or on the vessel.
Separately, the Houthis on Sunday claimed responsibility for launching a missile at Israel's Nevatim Air Base in the Negev region, marking their second such attack in less than 48 hours.
The Israeli military said it intercepted the missile after warning sirens were triggered in the Arava region and near the Dead Sea. No casualties were reported, according to Israel's Magen David Adom rescue service.
In a statement carried by al-Masirah TV, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said the group used a "hypersonic ballistic missile" to target the base, pledging continued military operations in support of Palestinians amid the war in Gaza.
"Our military operations in support of the Palestinian people will continue until the aggression on Gaza ends and the blockade is lifted," Sarea said.
The strikes come after US airstrikes hit the Ras Isa fuel port in Yemen last week, killing at least 74 people and wounding 171 others.
The strikes follow the resumption of negotiations in Rome between the US and Iran over Tehran's rapidly advancing nuclear program, which Washington has linked to its attacks in Yemen.
The US is targeting the Houthis because of the group's attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, a crucial global trade route, and on Israel.
The Houthis are the last militant group in Iran's self-described "Axis of Resistance" that is capable of regularly attacking Israel.
Tensions between the Houthis and US forces have escalated sharply since March 15, when Washington resumed airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen, a campaign criticised by many regional governments as a threat to wider stability.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
36 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Environment Minister refutes claim of Delhi Zoo ‘privatisation'
Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav on Saturday (June 7, 2025) rebutted allegations by Congress leader and party spokesperson Jairam Ramesh that the National Zoological Park in Delhi was on a path to 'privatisation'. Mr. Ramesh, in a post on social media, was responding to a media report that cited an unnamed official in the Environment Ministry, stating that a knowledge-sharing agreement was being negotiated between the Delhi Zoo and the Reliance Industries-run Greens Zoological Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre (GZRRC), which operates the Vantara facility in Jamnagar, Gujarat. In a statement issued via social media platform X, Mr. Yadav said, 'Some people have made it a habit to create doubts in the mind of the public at every instance. Zoological parks enter into collaborative MoUs with other zoos, universities and scientific institutions for enhancement of conservation efforts, scientific research, education and capacity building, resource sharing and animal welfare, etc.' He clarified that the Central Zoo Authority (CZA), the regulatory body for zoos in the country, routinely enters into such partnerships, and that the MoU with GZRRC had originally been signed in January 2021. 'This MoU is focused on exchange of animals, capacity building of animal keepers, technical exchanges on scientific management of animals and sharing knowledge on conservation breeding and education. GZRRC has developed state-of-the-art facilities and services in animal health and welfare, world-class zoo designing, rescue and rehabilitation of wild animals and habitat enrichment,' Mr. Yadav said. He added that a 'revised' MoU was being considered to deepen collaboration in areas such as wildlife conservation, animal rescue and rehabilitation, veterinary care, zoo planning, enclosure design, conservation education, and capacity building. 'Key areas of cooperation include support for veterinary care and allied services, exchange of best practices in captive management of endangered species, and technical assistance in zoo planning, enclosure design, enrichment, visitor engagement, and staff training. It also includes knowledge-sharing initiatives, staff exchange, capacity building, conservation education, and potential animal exchanges,' Mr. Yadav noted. He said the Delhi Zoo had entered into similar collaborations in the past as part of its modernisation initiatives focused on improving animal welfare and enhancing visitor experience. Mr. Ramesh, however, had questioned the manner in which the proposed agreement was being pursued, alleging that it was being done in a 'hush-hush' fashion. 'Zoos, national parks, tiger and other reserves, and sanctuaries are all public services and must never be privatised in any form,' he said.
Indian Express
2 hours ago
- Indian Express
‘Some have habit of creating doubts': Minister Bhupender Yadav rebuts Jairam Ramesh on Delhi Zoo privatization concerns
Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav Saturday rebutted questions and privatization concerns raised by Congress leader Jairam Ramesh regarding the Delhi Zoo and an agreement proposed between the Centre-run establishment and Reliance-run Greens Zoological, Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre (GZRRC). In a post on social media platform X, Yadav said that the National Zoological Park (NZP), which is run by the Centre, had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with GZRRC, based in Gujarat's Jamnagar, in January 2021, and NZP has sought to revise the existing MoU. He said NZP has signed MoUs with different organisations working in wildlife management in the past as part of its modernisation drive and will continue to do so. Replying to Ramesh's post, Yadav said, 'Some people have made it a habit to create doubts in the mind of the public at every instance.' Ramesh had said on June 4 that while the government 'claims that this is not a management transfer, its past record does not inspire confidence. Is this the first step towards handing over the zoo to a private enterprise?' Yadav said that the 2021 MoU between NZP and GZRRC focused on the exchange of animals, capacity building, animal keepers, technical exchanges on the scientific management of animals, and sharing knowledge on conservation breeding and education. 'Keeping in line with the common objectives of captive wildlife management and for further broadening the collaboration as per current management requirements, NZP sought to revise the existing MoU with GZRRC. The proposed MoU aims to foster collaboration in wildlife conservation, rescue, rehabilitation, animal health, and welfare,' Yadav said. The key areas of cooperation, he added, include support for veterinary care, enclosure design, enrichment, staff training, knowledge-sharing initiatives, and potential animal exchanges. Yadav added in his post that GZRRC has developed state-of-the-art facilities and services in animal health and welfare, world-class zoo designing, rescue and rehabilitation of wild animals, and habitat enrichment. NZP, he said, being a 60-year-old institution, has gained substantial expertise in breeding and care of many endangered species and is aiming to modernise its facilities and services by adopting best practices in animal welfare in captivity, as well as enhanced visitor experience, on par with a world-class zoo. The Central Zoo Authority granted approval to GZRCC in February 2019, and an initial recognition was granted in August 2020. As per its latest available annual report, GZRRC is home to 10,360 animals of 345 species. Most animals housed at GZRRC are 'part of its initiative to rescue captive animals from impoverished conditions in zoos and facilities in the nature of zoos, to decongest them and provide welfare to animals that were housed under sub-optimal conditions,' the annual report states. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited and inaugurated Vantara, the rescue facility at Jamnagar, on March 4 this year.
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
3 hours ago
- First Post
US lawmaker asks Pakistan to release Shakil Afridi: Who is the doctor who helped CIA hunt Osama bin Laden?
US Congressman Brad Sherman has told a Pakistani delegation, led by Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, to press their government to release Shakil Afridi. The Pakistani doctor has been languishing in prison since May 2011. He was recruited by the CIA to lead a vaccination programme, a front to identify al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden at his residence in Pakistan's Abbottabad read more A Pakistani doctor hailed as a hero in the United States but seen as a 'traitor' in his own country continues to languish in jail. Now, a senior American lawmaker has called for the release of Dr Shakil Afridi, who helped the US track down al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. Congressman Brad Sherman told a visiting Pakistani delegation, led by former Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, to emphasise to their government the need to release Afridi from prison. 'Freeing Dr Afridi represents an important step in bringing closure for victims of 9/11,' he said. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Sherman also called on Pakistan to do 'all it can' to eliminate the 'vile' terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and ensure the protection of religious minorities. I urged the Pakistani delegation to relay to their government the need to free Dr. Shakil Afridi, who continues to languish in prison for helping the United States kill Osama Bin Laden. Freeing Dr. Afridi represents an important step in bringing closure for victims of 9/11. 2/5 — Congressman Brad Sherman (@BradSherman) June 5, 2025 As Shakil Afridi gains centre stage again, let's take a look at who he is. Who is Shakil Afridi? Dr Shakil Afridi is a Pakistani doctor who helped the US' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in the hunt for al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden. Afridi graduated from Khyber Medical College in Peshawar in 1990. He served as the senior health official of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province. Afridi later went on to co-own a private clinic near the Khyber Pass. In 2008, he was abducted by Mangal Bagh, a bus driver turned commander of a Pakistani militant group, Lashkar-e-Islam. His family had to pay a ransom of PKR 1 million to secure the doctor's release. After he was freed, Afridi moved to the US with his family. However, he returned to Pakistan by late 2009 as American life did not suit him, as per the National Geographic report. His role in Osama bin Laden's killing Afridi has reportedly told Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) that he was recruited by the CIA through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which had collaborated with Save the Children to vaccinate children in Pakistan. As head of health services in Khyber tribal district, the doctor had supervised several US-funded vaccination programmes. He proved to be an asset for the CIA, which was looking to confirm bin Laden's hideout in the military town of Abbottabad, about 160 kilometres west of Peshawar, Pakistan. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Afridi was told to launch a hepatitis B vaccination programme, including in Abbottabad, where bin Laden was hiding. The US intelligence plan was to obtain a blood sample from one of the children living in the Abbottabad compound to identify whether they were relatives of bin Laden, reported BBC. In April 2011, Afridi knocked on the door of the three-story white house surrounded by 20-foot-high walls in Bilal Town, Abbottabad, where bin Laden was hiding. According to the National Geographic report, a woman opened the door who said no one was home and when pressed for the house owner's number, gave one for 'Ibrahim Saeed Ahmed'. The CIA knew that a man named Ibrahim Saeed Ahmed was bin Laden's trusted courier. On May 2, 2011, US Navy SEAL Team Six raided bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad , killed the 9/11 attacks mastermind and took his body, without any challenge. The operation was a huge embarrassment for Pakistan as Laden was hiding so close to Pakistani military installations. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD There was a wave of anger against Dr Afridi in the South Asian country. He was arrested on May 23, 2011, 20 days after bin Laden was killed. Shakil Afridi remains behind bars Afridi, who was 48 years old at the time of his arrest, was initially accused of treason. However, in May 2012, a Pakistani tribal court sentenced him to 33 years in prison for funding the now-defunct Lashkar-e-Islam under a colonial-era law. This 'financial assistance' was the ransom that his family gave to the group for the doctor's release after they kidnapped him in 2008. Afridi's sentence was later reduced to 23 years on appeal. He is lodged in Pakistan's Punjab's Sahiwal Central Prison, with his plea against his conviction still pending. A man reads a newspaper bearing the photograph of Pakistani surgeon Shakil Afridi, recruited by the CIA to help find Osama bin Laden, at a newsstand in Karachi on May 24, 2012. File Photo/AFP 'Let's be clear: Afridi has paid the highest price,' Michael Kugelman, Director of the South Asia Institute at the Wilson Centre in Washington, told AFP. 'He became the fall guy.' In an interview with Fox News in 2012 from his prison cell, the doctor said he had been kidnapped and tortured by Pakistani intelligence. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD It remains unclear whether Dr Afridi knew he was working for the CIA. US intelligence specialists say even if he knew, the Pakistani doctor is unlikely to have known that the man whose location he helped to identify was the notorious terrorist Osama bin Laden, reported National Geographic. There were talks between the US and Pakistan of a prisoner swap. However, the deal to exchange Shakil Afridi for Dr Aafia Siddiqui never materialised. Siddiqui is an alleged al-Qaeda operative currently jailed in the US. The fallout of Shakil Afridi's case was the growing distrust in vaccine campaigns in Pakistan, with families refusing to inoculate children for curable diseases such as polio. 'Whenever someone works for a foreign intelligence agency, it's one of the most unforgivable crimes,' Asad Durrani, the former head of Pakistan's ISI, told AFP in 2021, saying that Afridi's arrest likely saved the doctor from being lynched. With inputs from agencies
