Saudi-led airstrikes hit the rebel-held Yemeni capital Sanaa on Tuesday hours before a five-day humanitarian truce was set to begin, and Washington cautioned against "provocative actions" after Iran dispatched a cargo ship to Yemen.
The United States said it was tracking Iranian warships accompanying the vessel bound for the port of Hodaida, and urged Iran instead to use a U.N. distribution hub in Djibouti to provide help to people in the war-damaged Arabian Peninsula country.
"We're certainly tracking this convoy closely," U.S. State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke told a daily briefing. "We would discourage any provocative actions."