US downs several Houthi drones in new strikes on Yemen

The US military claims to have shot down multiple drones belonging to the Ansarallah (“Houthi”) aligned armed forces in Yemen.

The strikes are the latest carried out by the US which, along with Britain, bombed Yemen on 11 and 12 January ostensibly in response to an uptick in naval operations against Israeli-linked vessels in the Red Sea, as part of Sanaa’s solidarity with the people of Gaza who are facing an ongoing genocidal onslaught by the Israeli occupation army.

According to a statement issued by the US Central Command (CENTCOM) yesterday, American forces targeted “an Iranian-backed Houthi UAV ground control station and 10 Houthi one-way UAVs,” deeming them to present “an imminent threat to merchant vessels and the U.S. Navy ships in the region.”

“This action will protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure for U.S. Navy vessels and merchant vessels,” the statement concluded.

The US also said earlier that the USS Carney had shot down a Houthi anti-ship ballistic missile fired off the Gulf of Aden and downed three Iranian drones.

READ: UK foreign secretary to discuss Houthi shipping attacks during Oman visit

Yesterday, the spokesman for the Yemeni armed forces, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, said in a televised speech that the country had targeted a US warship, USS Greeley, in the Red Sea. He emphasised that warships in the Red Sea and Arabian Sea were legitimate targets.

The spokesman also revealed that the “American Commercial ship, KOI, was targeted with appropriate naval missiles, while heading towards the occupied Palestinian ports.”

“In line with the right to legitimate defence of our country and nation and emphasising Yemen’s continued support for Palestine, American and British warships will be targeted,” he said, adding Yemen will continue to prevent the movement of the Israeli ships or ships bound for occupied Palestinian ports until the war in Gaza stops and the blockade is lifted.

Saree’s sentiments were echoed by a senior official in the Sanaa government, Mohammad Ali Al-Houthi, who is a member of the Supreme Political Council. US threats and actions against Yemen will not deter it from continuing its operations in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, Al-Houthi said, adding that any US “endeavours or folly” against Yemen would end in failure. The Yemeni people, he continued, “will not be deterred” from “their mission [of supporting] Gaza.”

READ: Houthis target commercial US ship heading to Israel