US Navy shoots down Houthi missiles, drones fired in Red Sea

Washington (Uttam Hindu News): US Central Command (CENTCOM) on Wednesday said the Navy shot down drone and missile attacks carried out by the Iran-backed Houthi militia from Yemen to the southern Red Sea, a sharp increase in the number of attacks carried out by rebels in the region in recent months. One of the biggest attacks ever.

The rebels launched an Iranian-designed, one-sided attack from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen toward international shipping lanes in the southern Red Sea, where dozens of merchant ships were transiting, CENTCOM said in a post on X at about 9:15 p.m. Tuesday. Launched a massive attack of UAVs, anti-ship cruise missiles and an anti-ship ballistic missile. According to Central Command, the US Navy ships Dwight D. Eisenhower, Gravely, Laboon, Mason and the UK’s HMS Diamond jointly shot down 18 unilateral attack UAVs, two anti-ship cruise missiles and one anti-ship ballistic missile .

Centcom confirmed there were no reports of damage on Tuesday. It was the 26th Houthi attack on commercial shipping lanes in the Red Sea since November 19, 2023, when it announced support for Hamas in the terrorist group’s ongoing war with Israel. The Houthis have used missiles, drones, fast boats and helicopters to carry out attacks and have often claimed that targeted ships were linked to Israel. A group of twelve countries, Australia, Bahrain, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the UK and the US, jointly issued a formal warning to the Houthis on January 3, calling the attacks in the Red Sea illegal and unacceptable. And described as highly destabilizing.

He said there is no legal justification for deliberately targeting civilian shipping and naval vessels. If the attacks continue, the Houthis will have to face consequences. According to the International Chamber of Shipping, 20 percent of the world’s container ships are currently avoiding the Red Sea and transiting around southern Africa due to the attacks. However, the Iran-backed militia rejected the formal warning and pledged to continue targeting Israeli-linked vessels until the fighting in Gaza stops. Houthi spokesman Dhaifallah al-Shami said in a statement on January 4 that given that the US and Western countries are supporting Israel in carrying out more genocide against the Palestinian people, this is a moral failure and a cover-up of Israel’s crimes. A pathetic effort.

He stressed that the armed group would continue to attack commercial vessels belonging to Israel until Israel ends its offensive into Hamas-controlled territory. The Houthis control much of northern Yemen, including the capital Sanaa and the strategic Red Sea port city of Hodeidah, where the group has seized the Galaxy Leader, a Japanese-operated cargo ship belonging to an Israeli company, and its crew since 19 November 2023. Is kept. The US, along with other Western countries, formed a multinational maritime coalition in December 2023 to protect ships passing through the Red Sea from Houthi attacks.