According to US Central Command, a US Navy ship successfully intercepted and neutralised fourteen drones that were fired from locations in Yemen that are under the authority of the Houthis.
In a statement on X, US Central Command stated that the drones were shot down without causing any harm to nearby ships or injuries. The drones were determined to be one-way attack drones.
This is the most recent incident of drones being shot down in the area; commercial ships have been targeted by the Houthi rebels, who receive funding and training from Iran, on multiple occasions.
A trio of Houthi drones were neutralised earlier this month in the southern Red Sea by the USS Carney. Commercial ships in the region were attacked by ballistic missiles, and the Carney also responded to their distress cries.
A number of Yemeni one-way attack drones were shot down last month by the USS Thomas Hudner. Another incident occurred when the USS Mason, responding to a distress call from another commercial tanker that had been attacked by five armed men thought to be Somali, was targeted by two ballistic missiles fired from Houthi-controlled regions in Yemen into the Gulf of Aden.
The United States has retaliated to these assaults in the past few months by conducting airstrikes in eastern Iraq and Syria, specifically targeting storage facilities and weapons dumps frequented by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its proxy militia organisations.
The United States has avoided explicitly stating that drones launched from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen were aiming at the different vessels, instead stating that the drones had been moving in their direction and posed a significant enough threat to warrant engagement.
Since 2014, a coalition backed by Saudi Arabia has been engaged in civil conflict with the Shia political and military group known as the Houthi rebels in Yemen, who are backed by Iran. They have taken a stand in solidarity with the Palestinians and coordinated demonstrations in Yemen in response to Israel’s invasion of Gaza.
Following Hamas’ assault on Israel on October 7, there was an increase in activity by the Houthis and other groups sponsored by Iran that attacked US forces in Iraq and Syria.
