The United States Military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) has said it shot down 18 drones launched by Yemen’s Houthi rebels over the southern Red Sea, the armed group’s 26th attack on international shipping lanes in the last seven weeks.
Working with forces from the United Kingdom, CENTCOM said two anti-ship cruise missiles and one anti-ship ballistic missile were also brought down.
“Iranian-backed Houthis launched a complex attack of Iranian designed one-way attack UAVs… anti-ship cruise missiles, and an anti-ship ballistic missile from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen into the Southern Red Sea,” the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement on Wednesday.
The attack was the 26th by the Houthis on shipping lanes in the Red Sea since November 19 when it hijacked the Galaxy Leader, a vehicle carrier that was on its way from Turkey to India.
The Iran-aligned group said it began the attacks in protest at Israel’s war on Gaza.
CENTCOM said fighter jets from the Dwight D Eisenhower aircraft carrier and four destroyers, including one from the UK, took part in the operation.
No injuries or damage were reported.
The US last month formed an international maritime coalition to deal with the attacks, which have prompted some shipping lines to take the longer sea route around southern Africa and avoid the Red Sea altogether.
