HODEIDA, Yemen, April 9, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Yemen's Huthi rebels said Wednesday the number of people killed in an air strike on Hodeida the day before that they blamed on the United States has risen to eight.

"The death toll of the American aggression in Hodeida rose to eight martyrs and 16 wounded, with rubble removal operations ongoing," the Huthis' Al-Masirah TV station said, quoting the health ministry.

On Tuesday, health ministry spokesman Anis al-Asbahi had said four children and two women had been killed.

Huthi media said the strike had targeted a residential area in the Red Sea port city. On Tuesday night, an AFP journalist heard three loud blasts in succession.

Rebel-held areas of Yemen have seen near-daily strikes since Washington launched an air campaign against the Iran-backed Huthis on March 15 to force them to stop threatening vessels in key maritime routes.

Since then, the Huthis have also launched attacks targeting US military ships and Israel, claiming to be acting in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

The rebels began targeting ships transiting the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, as well as Israeli territory, after the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023, later pausing their attacks during a January ceasefire.

Israel cut off all supplies to Gaza at the start of March, and resumed its offensive on the Palestinian territory on March 18, ending the short-lived truce.

The new US campaign followed Huthi threats to resume attacks on vessels over Israel's Gaza blockade.

The Huthi attacks crippled the vital Red Sea route, which normally carries about 12 percent of world shipping traffic, forcing many companies to make a much longer detour around the tip of southern Africa.