The Pentagon said on Tuesday (November 12) that US warships shot down drones and missiles launched by Yemen’s Houthi rebels while passing through the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
According to Reuters, the Houthi rebels earlier on Tuesday stated that they carried out two military actions against US Navy ships in the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea. The group’s military spokesperson claimed that these military actions lasted for eight hours.
Pentagon spokesperson Patrick Ryder stated that on Monday (December 11), two US warships were attacked by at least eight drones, five anti-ship ballistic missiles, and three anti-ship cruise missiles. The US Navy ships shot down these projectiles and sustained no damage.
Houthi rebel spokesperson Yahya Sarea had previously stated that the first operation used multiple missiles and drones, targeting a US aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea; the second operation involved launching missiles and drones at two US destroyers in the Red Sea.
Ryder mentioned that he was unaware of any attacks on the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier.
Since the war between Israel and Hamas in October 2023, the Houthi rebels have frequently used missiles and drones to attack commercial ships passing through the Red Sea, forcing international vessels to take detours, increasing transportation time and costs.
The Houthi rebels claimed that they targeted ships associated with Israel to show solidarity with Palestinians during the Gaza war. The attacks by the Yemeni Houthi rebels on ships prompted retaliatory strikes from the US and the UK.
On October 17 this year, the US military deployed B-2 stealth bombers to target underground fortifications used by the Yemeni Houthi rebels. It is widely believed that this action signifies an escalation in the US response to attacks by the Houthi rebels on Middle Eastern shipping routes, while also sending a warning to Iran.
In January this year, US and British forces conducted strikes in Yemen targeting underground missile storage sites of the Houthi rebels, as well as their missile and surveillance capabilities used to disrupt Red Sea shipping, in alliance with Iran.