On Saturday (June 22), the Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed that their forces attacked the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier in the Red Sea. However, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) rejected this as completely false. Two US officials also told Reuters that the Houthi rebels’ claims were incorrect.
Previously, the Houthi rebels claimed to have carried out an attack on the Eisenhower in the Red Sea, achieving their objective without providing detailed information. The group also stated that they attacked a merchant ship, the Global Voyager, in the Arabian Sea without disclosing the time of the attack.
The US Central Command issued a statement on X refuting the recent rumors that the Houthi rebels successfully attacked the Eisenhower aircraft carrier, calling it “absolutely false.”
Regarding the rumors of the US aircraft carrier being attacked, an official who declined to be named also told Reuters, “This is incorrect.”
The US Navy stated that the Eisenhower has been the subject of false attack accusations multiple times while in the Red Sea, which has been one of the most fiercely contested areas since World War II.
On Saturday, Pentagon spokesman Major General Pat Ryder released a statement saying that the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group is leaving the CENTCOM area of responsibility in the Red Sea and is set to return to the US. The carrier strike group had been deployed in the Red Sea for over seven months, supporting US regional deterrence and force protection efforts.
“During the deployment, the Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group protected ships transiting the Red Sea, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, and the Gulf of Aden, rescued innocent sailors from being illegally attacked by Iran-backed Houthi rebels, and helped prevent further aggression,” the statement said.
Ryder also noted that the Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group will arrive in the CENTCOM area of responsibility to continue promoting regional stability, deterring aggression, and safeguarding the free flow of trade in the region.
Last November, the Houthi rebels, allied with Iran, launched drone and missile attacks in the Red Sea and in more than 70 attacks, they sunk two ships, seized another, and killed at least three sailors.
In response, the US and the UK began airstrikes on Houthi rebel targets in Yemen in January. According to the rebels, the May 30 attack resulted in at least 16 deaths and 42 injuries.
The US Central Command stated on Saturday that in the past 24 hours, American forces destroyed three Iranian-backed Houthi rebel unmanned surface vessels in the Red Sea.
Additionally, CENTCOM added that the Houthi rebels fired three anti-ship ballistic missiles towards the Gulf of Aden, but there were no reports of casualties or significant damage to US, coalition, or commercial vessels.
“The continued malicious and reckless actions of the Iran-backed Houthi rebels threaten regional stability and endanger the lives of sailors in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The Houthi rebels claim to represent the people of Gaza but they threaten and take the lives of innocent civilians unrelated to the conflict in Gaza. CENTCOM will continue to take action with partners to hold the Houthi rebels accountable and weaken their military capabilities,” CENTCOM said.