WASHINGTON
\nAmerican forces destroyed seven drones and a control station vehicle in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen over the past 24 hours, the US military said.
\nThe strikes were carried out because the drones and the vehicle \u201cpresented an imminent threat to US coalition forces, and merchant vessels in the region,\u201d the US Central Command said in a statement on social media platform X.
\nHouthis have been targeting vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November 2023 in attacks they say are in solidarity with Palestinians during the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.
\nOn Friday, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed responsibility for attacks on four vessels, including a \u201cdirect hit\u201d on the Delonix tanker in the Red Sea after an operation involving several ballistic missiles.
\nHowever, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said five missiles were fired on Friday in \u201cclose proximity\u201d to this vessel, which it said reported no damage.
\nThe Delonix was located around 150 nautical miles (277 kilometers) northwest port of Hodeida when it was attacked, according to UKMTO, which is run by Britain\u2019s Royal Navy.
\nThe Houthis also claimed attacks on the Waler oil tanker and Johannes Maersk container ship in the Mediterranean Sea and the Ioannis bulk carrier in the Red Sea.
\nThe United States in December announced a maritime security initiative to protect Red Sea shipping from Houthi attacks, which have forced commercial vessels to divert from the route that normally carries 12 percent of global trade.
\nCENTCOM said its strike on Friday was carried out \u201cto protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure.\u201d
\n\u201cThis continued malign and reckless behavior by Houthis threatens regional stability and endangers the lives of mariners across the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.\u201d
\nThe attacks have sent insurance costs spiraling for vessels transiting the Red Sea and prompted many shipping firms to take the far longer passage around the southern tip of Africa instead.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON American forces destroyed seven drones and a control station vehicle in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen over the past 24 hours, the US military said. The strikes were carried out because the drones and the vehicle \u201cpresented an imminent threat to US coalition forces, and merchant vessels in the region,\u201d the US Central Command said […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":415480,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-415468","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n