The US military carried out fresh airstrikes on Yemen-based Houthi rebels on October 17. The US forces used B-2 stealth bombers for the first time to attack deep underground bunkers of the Houthis in Yemen. US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin, in a statement, said, “At the direction of President Biden, I authorised these targeted strikes to further degrade the Houthis’ capability to continue their destabilising behaviour and to protect and defend US forces and personnel in one of the world’s most critical waterways.”