ADEN/WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. strikes on Yemen’s Ras Isa fuel port have killed at least 74 people in the deadliest attack since the U.S. launched its large-scale campaign against the Houthis last month, according to the Houthi-run health ministry.

The United States has vowed to keep attacking Yemen’s Houthis, in its biggest military operation in the Middle East since President Donald Trump took office in January, unless the Houthis cease attacks on Red Sea shipping.

Health ministry spokesperson Anees al-Asbahi said 171 people were injured in Thursday’s strikes, according to preliminary figures, with rescue teams continuing efforts to search for victims.

US Military Attacks Key Houthi Fuel Supply

The U.S. military said the strikes aimed to cut off a source of fuel for the Houthi militant group.

Ras Isa terminal has a storage capacity of 3 million barrels and was the first port built for oil exports from Yemen, around 40 years ago.

U.S. Central Command did not comment on the health ministry’s casualty figure.

“The objective of these strikes was to degrade the economic source of power of the Houthis, who continue to exploit and bring great pain upon their fellow countrymen,” it had said in a post on X.

The Houthis have taken control of swathes of Yemen over the past decade. Since November 2023, the group has launched dozens of drone and missile attacks on vessels in the Red Sea, saying they were targeting ships linked to Israel in solidarity with Palestinians over the war in Gaza.

They halted attacks on shipping lanes during a two-month ceasefire in Gaza. Although they vowed to resume strikes after Israel renewed its assault on the enclave last month, they have not struck targets in the Red Sea since then.

In March, two days of U.S. attacks killed more than 50 people, Houthi officials said.

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(Reporting by Mohammed Ghobari, Ismail Shakil, Sarah Morland, Hatem Maher, Jana Choukeir; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan and Ros Russell)