Al Masirah TV, citing the Hodeidah Health Office, reported that Thursday’s strikes also left 102 people wounded.

In a statement, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the operation aimed to disrupt the Houthis  access to funds and resources.

“The objective of these strikes was to degrade the economic source of power of the Houthis, who continue to exploit and bring great pain upon their fellow countrymen,” CENTCOM posted on social media.

The Pentagon has not yet commented on the rising death toll.

Footage released by Al Masirah TV early Friday showed large explosions lighting up the night sky over Ras Isa port.

“Initial footage of the US aggression’s crime targeting the Ras Isa oil port, resulting in a number of martyrs and dozens of port workers and employees being injured,” a caption attached to the post said in Arabic.

The US attack marks one of the deadliest since the US launched air strikes against the Houthis in its biggest military operation in the Middle East since US President Donald Trump took office in January. In March, two days of US attacks killed more than 50 people, Houthi officials said

Ras Isa hosts an oil pipeline and port that are “critical and irreplaceable infrastructure” in Yemen, according to the United Nations Development Programme.

Almost 70 percent of Yemen’s imports and 80 percent of its humanitarian assistance passes through the ports of Ras Isa, Hodeidah and as-Salif.

Since November 2023, the Houthis have reportedly launched more than 100 attacks on vessels they say are linked to Israel, a campaign they say is in response to Israel’s war on Gaza.