SANAA — Huge crowds joined protests in Yemen on Monday after deadly US strikes killed dozens and sparked fears of a new cycle of violence in the conflict-torn country.

Tens of thousands of demonstrators, many waving assault rifles, or daggers, chanted anti-US and anti-Israel, slogans in the capital Sanaa.

There were also large crowds in Saada, the birthplace of the Iran-backed Houthi movement, and demonstrations in other major cities, footage from the militias' Al-Masirah TV station showed.

"Yemen will never back down, we defy the Americans, we defy the Zionists," said a man shouting slogans to the Sanaa crowd.

The protests came after the first US strikes on Yemen, aimed at ending the Houthis' Red Sea campaign, which killed 53 people and wounded 98 on Saturday.

The militias launched scores of attacks on ships on the vital route during the Gaza conflict, claiming solidarity with the Palestinians.

The Houthis on Tuesday claimed their third attack on US warships in 48 hours.

The Houthis said on Telegram they had targeted the USS Harry S.Truman carrier group with missiles and drones, making the attack the "third in the past 48 hours" in the northern Red Sea.

There was no comment from the United States.

The United Nations urged both sides to "cease all military activity "while expressing concern over Houthi threats to resume the Red Sea attacks.

Washington has vowed to keep hitting Yemen until the militants stop attacking Red Sea shipping, with US President Donald Trump warning he would use "overwhelming lethal force".

In a social media post, he also addressed Iran, asking it to stop supporting Houthi "terrorists".

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi condemned the US strikes and said Washington had "no authority" to dictate Teheran's foreign policy.

A database set up by ACLED, a nonprofit monitor, shows 136 Houthi attacks against warships, commercial vessels, and Israeli and other targets since Oct 19,2023.

While the Red Sea trade route normally carries around 12 percent of world shipping traffic, Houthi attacks have forced many companies into costly detours around southern Africa.

Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Rashad Al-Alimi warned on Monday that maritime routes will remain a persistent source of regional tension as long as Houthi forces maintain control over Yemen's coastal territories.

The statement came during Al-Alimi's meeting with French Ambassador to Yemen Catherine Corm-Kammoun in the southern port city of Aden, according to the state-run Saba News Agency.

Agencies - Xinhua