US and allied forces have shot down 15 drones fired by Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, US Middle East Command (Centcom) said Saturday.
According to a Centcom statement, the attack occurred at dawn (local time) as the Houthis launched a “large-scale drone operation in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.”
The “massive” attack posed “an immediate threat to merchant ships, US Navy and coalition ships in the region, which is why they were shot down,” the same source said.
The drones were shot down by “US Navy ships and aircraft, as well as several coalition ships and aircraft,” the command said, citing Spanish news agency EFE and French news agency AFP.
Centcom confirmed that “these actions are being taken to protect freedom of navigation and enhance the safety of international waters.”
Centcom’s statement came hours after Houthi military spokesman Yehya Sarea delayed the release of a statement he had planned to make until midnight “due to urgent military developments.”
Since mid-November, Houthi rebels have carried out dozens of attacks on ships in the Red and Arabian Seas, as well as on Israel.
The Houthis say they are carrying out the attacks in retaliation for Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip against the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, which began five months ago.
Rebel operations in the region have intensified in recent weeks following US and British bombings of their positions and after Washington classified them as a terrorist group.
Rebel leader Abdelmalek al-Houthi said on Thursday that the group had carried out 96 ballistic missile and drone strikes against 61 ships in the region since the Gaza war began.
In December, the United States created a multinational naval force to protect merchant shipping and launched attacks, sometimes with the help of the United Kingdom, on rebel positions in Yemen.
The actions of the rebels who control vast areas of Yemen have forced many shipowners to suspend passage through these important sea routes.
According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), container traffic through the Red Sea fell by almost 30% over the year.
Before the war, between 12% and 15% of global traffic passed through the Red Sea, according to the European Union.
Yemen, at war for more than a decade, is considered the poorest country on the Arabian Peninsula.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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