Washington escalates its attacks against Tehran on the fourth day of its airstrikes in Yemen due to its support for the Houthis.

Washington has escalated its rhetoric against Tehran over its support for the Houthis in Yemen. This comes on the fourth consecutive day of US airstrikes on several Yemeni provinces, which the US administration says target Houthi militia sites and capabilities.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, "Without Iran, there would be no Houthi threat of this magnitude," noting that "Tehran's leaders created this horrific monster, and now they must bear the responsibility." This comes after Trump's threats that Iran would be held responsible for any new Houthi attacks.

"The Houthis have attacked US naval vessels 174 times over the past 18 months," Warbao added in press statements on Monday night, noting that "they do not have the ability to do so without Iranian assistance."

"The Houthis have learned how to make sophisticated anti-ship drones, but that technology comes from somewhere," Rubio explained. "Iran is helping the Houthis make these things and providing them with the funds to do so."

In another context, the US Secretary of State said, "It's a mistake to think of it as if we're bombing Yemen. We're bombing the Houthis," noting that "they are present in Yemen and have taken control of parts of its territory. They claim to be the government, but in reality they are not."

In response, Iran informed the UN Security Council that Trump and other US officials had made "reckless and provocative" statements, made "baseless accusations," and threatened to use force against Tehran.

"Iran strongly and categorically rejects any accusation of violating Security Council resolutions related to the arms embargo in Yemen, or of involvement in any destabilizing activities in the region," said Iranian Ambassador to the United Nations Amir Saeed Iravani.

Early Tuesday morning, US warplanes launched a series of airstrikes targeting sites in the coastal city of Hodeidah in western Yemen, as well as other locations in the capital, Sanaa. According to Houthi media, "the raids destroyed the Al-Habashi Iron Factory in the Al-Salif district."

Continued US attacks

Officials said on Monday that the US military would continue its attacks on the Houthis in Yemen. The Pentagon said that US forces had struck more than 30 Houthi targets since Saturday, including command and control sites, training facilities, drone infrastructure, and weapons production and storage facilities.

"Today, the operation continues, and it will continue in the coming days until we achieve the president's objectives," General Alexus Grynkewich, a senior official on the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters at the Pentagon.

It was not immediately clear whether the Trump administration's operation would prove more successful in weakening the Iran-backed Houthis, who have controlled vast swaths of Yemen for more than a decade, than the Biden administration's air campaign against them, according to the Washington Post.

According to the American newspaper, "Despite a year of airstrikes under President Joe Biden, the Houthis have been able to continue manufacturing weapons and launching attacks on ships transiting the Red Sea, posing a significant threat in a major global trade corridor. The Houthis have also launched attacks on US naval sites and on Israel itself."

Officials declined to disclose what action they would take if the Houthis did not halt their attacks.

"There will be a very clear end to this, and I think a big part of that is how the Houthis respond," Parnell said. "The Houthis could have stopped this tomorrow if they had said they were going to stop shooting at your people, but they clearly chose not to."

He declined to say whether the administration would consider sending US ground forces to fight the Houthis if the air campaign was unsuccessful.

Grynkewich said the administration's operation against the Houthis aims to achieve "specific results." He added that despite Houthi assurances, there have been no credible reports of civilian casualties in the ongoing US strikes, but it appears that "dozens" of Houthi military personnel have been injured or killed.