US shoots down 4 drones launched from Houthi-controlled areas: US military command
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Ships in the Red Sea have been targeted by Houthi militants since Oct 17, with the latest attempt on Dec 23 involving drones, which were shot down.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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CAIRO – The United States shot down four drones headed towards a US destroyer in the Red Sea that had been launched from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen on Dec 23, US Central Command (Centcom) said.
“These attacks represent the 14th and 15th attacks on commercial shipping by Houthi militants since Oct 17,” it added in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
The Iran-aligned Houthis have disrupted world trade for weeks with attacks on ships passing through the Bab al-Mandab Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea in what they said is a response to Israel’s war in Gaza.
Iran supports the Houthis but officially denies arming the group, which has seized Yemen’s capital Sanaa after ousting the government and now controls large swathes of the country.
The US Naval Forces Central Command responded to distress calls from two ships under attack, Centcom said.
A tanker owned and operated by Norway reported a near miss of a Houthi drone attack, and a Gabon-owned, Indian-flagged crude oil tanker reported being hit by a one-way attack.
Two Houthi anti-ship ballistic missiles were also “fired into international shipping lanes in the Southern Red Sea from Houthi controlled areas of Yemen”, Centcom said. “No ships reported being impacted by the ballistic missiles.”
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency earlier reported that an uncrewed aerial system had exploded near a vessel in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, 45 nautical miles south-west of Saleef, Yemen.
Iran has denied US accusations that it was involved in planning attacks by the Houthis in the Red Sea, the semi-official Mehr news agency reported.
The repeated denial, issued by Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani on Dec 23, came after the White House said Teheran was “deeply involved” in planning the operations and its intelligence was critical to enable the Houthis to target ships.
“The resistance (Houthis) has its own tools of power and acts according to its decisions and capabilities,” he told Mehr.
A Japanese-owned chemical tanker was also struck on Dec 23 off the coast of India “by a one-way attack drone fired from Iran”, the Pentagon said.
It was the first time the Pentagon has openly accused Iran of directly targeting ships since the start of Israel’s war on the Hamas militant group, which is backed by Teheran.
The attack took place around 10am local time and caused no casualties aboard the vessel, it added, noting that a fire was extinguished.
The US military “remains in communication with the vessel as it continues towards a destination in India”.
The Pentagon said the Chem Pluto sailed under a Liberian flag and was operated by a Dutch entity.
Ambrey, a maritime security firm, said the “chemical/products tanker... was Israel-affiliated” and was on its way from Saudi Arabia to India.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the Dutch company operating Chem Pluto “is connected to Israeli shipping tycoon Idan Ofer”.
The drone strike occurred 200 nautical miles off the coast of India, it added. No US Navy vessels were in the vicinity.
The Indian navy said it had responded to a request for assistance. “An aircraft was dispatched and it reached overhead the vessel and established safety of the involved ship and its crew,” an official told AFP.
“An Indian navy warship has also been dispatched so as to provide assistance as required.”
The US launched Operation Prosperity Guardian three days ago, saying more than a dozen countries agreed to participate in an effort that will involve joint patrols in Red Sea waters near Yemen.
