Biden: US sent private message to Iran about Houthis

(Patria) - President Joe Biden said on Saturday that the United States had conveyed a private message to Iran about the Houthis, Reuters reported.

"We delivered it privately and are confident that we are well prepared," Biden told reporters at the White House before leaving for the presidential center in Camp David.

The latest attack, which the United States said hit radar, followed dozens of US and British strikes on Houthi facilities in Yemen. White House spokesman John Kirby said on Friday that the initial strikes were against the Houthis' ability to store, launch, and guide missiles or drones, which the group has used to threaten shipping.

He added that Washington is not interested in a war with Yemen. Biden, whose administration removed the Houthis from the State Department's list of "foreign terrorist organizations" in 2021, was asked by reporters on Friday if he thought the term "terrorist" now described the movement.

"I think they are," Biden said.