Yemeni Houthi rebels said Wednesday they had targeted a US warship off the coast of Yemen, hours after the US military said it had shot down a missile there.
The rebels
“launched several suitable naval missiles at the US destroyer USS Gravely in the Red Sea
,” they said in a statement.
The US military's Middle East Command (Centcom) earlier said an anti-ship missile was fired at 11:30 p.m. Sanaa time (8:30 p.m. GMT) on Tuesday from Houthi-controlled areas towards the Red Sea.
“The missile was shot down by the USS Gravely (DDG 107).
No injuries or damage have been reported
,” he added.
Actions in “solidarity with the Palestinians”
The Houthis, who control large swaths of Yemeni territory, have carried out more than 35 attacks on ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since November 19, according to the Pentagon, disrupting maritime traffic in this essential area for the International trade.
These insurgents close to Iran say they want to prevent ships linked to Israel from sailing off the coast of Yemen,
“in solidarity”
with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, in the grip of the war between Israel and Hamas since October 7.
The United States, Israel's main ally, deployed warships to the Red Sea and carried out several strikes in January against rebel positions, sometimes jointly with the United Kingdom.
The Houthis repeated on Wednesday that they would continue their attacks until the end of the war in Gaza.
“All American and British warships in the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea that participate in the aggression against our country (...) will be targeted within the framework of the right to self-defense
,” they said. assured.