Pentagon confirms U.S. ground operations, airstrikes in Yemen

The aftermath of an airstrike in Yemen.
(Image credit: Stringer/AFP/Getty Images)

U.S. Central Command in Tampa announced Wednesday that in 2017, U.S. ground troops conducted "multiple ground operations and more than 120 airstrikes" in Yemen.

U.S. forces are trying to "disrupt the ability of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and ISIS-Yemen to use ungoverned spaces in Yemen as a hub for terrorist recruiting, training, and base of operations to export terror worldwide," CENTCOM said. Yemen is being devastated by a war between the government and Houthi rebels, and the Defense Department said that over the past year, the Islamic State has doubled in size in Yemen. That doesn't surprise experts, as ISIS has lost significant territory in Iraq and Syria, and is looking for a safe haven amid the chaos.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.