The United States and Britain struck dozens of targets in Yemen on Saturday in response to repeated attacks on shipping by Iran-backed Huthi rebels that have disrupted global trade and put lives at risk.

The joint air raids in Yemen come a day after a wave of unilateral American strikes against Iran-linked targets in Iraq and Syria that were carried out in response to the killing of three US soldiers in Jordan on January 28.

The strikes hit “36 Huthi targets across 13 locations in Yemen in response to the Huthis’ continued attacks against international and commercial shipping as well as naval vessels transiting the Red Sea,” the United States, Britain and other countries that provided support for the operation said in a statement.

“These precision strikes are intended to disrupt and degrade the capabilities that the Huthis use to threaten global trade, and the lives of innocent mariners,” the statement said.

The assault “targeted sites associated with the Huthis’ deeply buried weapons storage facilities, missile systems and launchers, air defense systems, and radars.”

US forces earlier Saturday separately carried out strikes against six Huthi anti-ship missiles that were “prepared to launch against ships in the Red Sea,” the Central Command (CENTCOM) said.

The military command also said Saturday that US forces shot down eight drones near Yemen the day before and destroyed four more before they could be launched.

CENTCOM said the four drones hit on the ground belonged to the Huthis, but did not identify a country or group linked to those that were shot out of the air.

The Huthis began targeting Red Sea shipping in November, saying they were hitting Israel-linked vessels in support of Palestinians in Gaza, which has been ravaged by the Israel-Hamas war.

US and British forces have responded with strikes against the Huthis, who have since declared American and British interests to be legitimate targets as well.

In addition to strikes against the Huthis, the United States set up a multinational naval task force aimed at protecting shipping on the transit route, which carries up to 12 percent of global trade.

Anger over Israel’s devastating campaign in Gaza — which began after an unprecedented Hamas attack on October 7 — has grown across the Middle East, stoking violence involving Iran-backed groups in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Yemen.

Last weekend, a drone slammed into a base in Jordan, killing three US soldiers and wounding more than 40 — an attack Washington blamed on Iran-backed forces.

The United States responded Friday with strikes against dozens of targets at seven Tehran-linked facilities in Iraq and Syria, but did not hit Iranian territory.
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Hundreds of accounts created on Paytm Payments Bank without proper identification were one of the major reasons for the Reserve Bank of India to impose stringent curbs on the company, people familiar with the matter said. These accounts with inadequate Know-Your-Customer (KYC) conducted transactions worth crores of rupees on the platform, leading to fears of potential money laundering.

More than 1,000 users were found to have linked the same Permanent Account Number (PAN) to their accounts. The compliance submitted by the bank was found to be incorrect during verification processes conducted by both the RBI and auditors.

RBI is concerned that some of the accounts could have been used for money laundering, sources said. As well as informing the Enforcement Directorate, the RBI has sent its findings to the ministry of home affairs and the prime minister’s office.

The Enforcement Directorate will probe Paytm Payments Bank if any evidence of illegal activity is found, Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra told Reuters.

There were also reports of non-disclosure of major transactions within the group and associated parties, further intensifying regulatory worries. The central bank’s scrutiny also unearthed loopholes in the governance standards, particularly in the linkage between Paytm Payments Bank and its parent company, One97 Communications Ltd.

Transactions routed through the parent app of Paytm raised data privacy concerns, leading to the RBI’s decision to halt transactions through Paytm Payments Bank. While user deposits in savings accounts, wallets, FASTags, and NCMC accounts are not immediately affected, the company will have to rely on third-party banks for its operations until February 29.

Following the RBI’s notice, Paytm stock experienced a sharp decline, plummeting 36% over two days and wiping $2 billion off its market value.

Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma dismissed the regulatory actions as a “speed bump” during a conference call with analysts, aiming to reassure stakeholders amid the ongoing turbulence.

The media’s question on why a woman sarpanch’s brother-in-law was representing her at a Samajwadi Party event drew a sharp response from party chief Akhilesh Yadav. Asked why the sarpanch was not present and her brother-in-law was filling in for her, Mr Yadav had a counter question: “Why are all of you (reporters) male?”

The exchange took place at an event to distribute laptops among students who had performed well in exams. The event was being held at the Belhara panchayat area in Uttar Pradesh’s Barabanki district. The organiser was local sarpanch Shabana Khatun, but she was missing. What’s more, her name was not on the hoardings either. Instead, her brother-in-law Ayaz Khan was present. It was his photograph on the posters, with “chairman” written next to him.

The Belhara panchayat seat is reserved for women. In the last polls, Ms Khathun was elected from there. But local residents say she never attends any panchayat event. It is her brother-in-law who takes all decisions of the panchayat, local residents say. Official documents are sent to the sarpanch’s home to be signed.

In fact, in several such reserved seats, husbands and other male relatives of woman sarpanches are known to be the de-facto sarpanch and the elected women do little more than sign documents.

At the event, a group of reporters asked Mr Yadav how a male relative representing a woman sarpanch can send a message of women empowerment. “Is this anything new? So many pradhanpatis (husbands of pradhans) are here. If this even a topic? Now, if I ask, why are all of you (reporters) male?” Mr Yadav replied to cheers from his supporters.

He then asked one of the reporters if there was no woman reporter in his channel who could have been sent for the event. “Send someone else then,” Mr Yadav said with a smile, adding, “I am only replying to your question.”