(Reuters) – Strikes by the U.S. and British militaries against Iran-backed Houthi forces in Yemen were “defensive, and designed to preserve freedom of navigation in one of the world’s most vital waterways”, a NATO spokesperson said on Friday.
“Houthi forces are supported, supplied and equipped by Iran. So Tehran has a special responsibility to rein in its proxies,” the spokesperson added.
NATO itself was not involved in the strikes, but both the U.S. and UK are NATO members while two other NATO members, the Netherlands and Canada, provided support.
The statement stopped short of saying whether the 31-member alliance supported the strike.
(Reporting by Tassilo Hummel, Andrew Gray and Charlotte Van Campenhout; editing by Toby Chopra)
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