Illustrative image.
The Houthis (Ansar Allah) announced on August 7 that they had attacked a merchant vessel in the Red Sea and two destroyers of the United States Navy in the Gulf of Oman in response to the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip and recent American-British strikes on Yemen.
The merchant vessel Contship Ono was targeted in the Red Sea with a number of ballistic missiles and drones, Houthi military spokesman Brigade General Yahya Sarea said in a statement, adding that the ship was attacked because it is owned by a company that “violated the [Houthis’] decision to ban entry to the ports of occupied Palestine.”
The Arleigh Burke-class destroyers USS Cole and Laboon in the Gulf of Aden were also targeted with drones and ballistic missiles, respectively, according to the spokesman.
“The attack on the two American destroyers came while they were crossing our area of operations towards the northern Red Sea to provide protection for the Israeli enemy,” Brig. Gen. Sarea said.
“We consider all U.S. military movements in our area as hostile movements and will not hesitate to attack them,” he added, affirming that his group’s attacks would continue until the conflict in Gaza is stopped.
The Athens-based Contships Management, which owns Contship Ono, told Reuters that “the vessel and its crew were safe and there had been no incident affecting its operations.”
A U.S. official also told the news agency that there was no data or information to corroborate the Houthis’ claim that the two destroyers had been attacked.
On August 8, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that its forces destroyed two drones, one ground control station and three anti-ship cruise missiles in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen over the past day.
“These weapons presented a clear and imminent threat to U.S. and coalition forces, and merchant vessels in the region,” CENTCOM said in a statement. “This reckless and dangerous behavior by Iranian-backed Houthis continues to threaten regional stability and security.”
Since November, the Houthis, who are backed by Iran, have attacked dozens of vessels affiliated with Israel or owned by the United States and the United Kingdom in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea in response to the Israeli war and siege on the Palestinian enclave of the Gaza Strip.
In addition, the group launched dozens of drones and missiles at Israel and shot down seven American-made combat drones over Yemen and nearby waters.
The U.S. and the UK have carried out hundreds of strikes against Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen since January in an attempt to deter the group and degrade its military capabilities, but to no avail.
Israel also launched an aerial attack against al-Hodeidah port last month after a deadly Houthi drone strike on the city of Tel Aviv. However, it was met with more threats by the group.
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the arleigh burke class destroyer uss kaboom
the uss ashton-cirillo is about ready for buty…
they’ll never stop the houthies, their part of the axis of fire that are gonna destroy the zionists. they fucked around now they will find out.
yes, i think it will only happen after a string of deaths in iran and syria that nobody talks about cleaning out moles.
“we consider all u.s. military movements in our area as hostile movements and will not hesitate to attack them,” he added, affirming that his group’s attacks would continue until the conflict in gaza is stopped.”
these guys have balls, i wouldn’t be surprised if at one point they board a us aircraft carrier and seize it.
wouldn’that be a shocker