U.S. warship downs Huthi drone

The US military’s confrontation with Yemen’s Huthi rebels escalates

A United States warship shot down an explosive drone launched from Yemen Wednesday, in a daring attack by Huthi rebels of the powerful US military.

The guided missile destroyer USS Thomas Hudner was transiting the international waters of the Red Sea on 15 November when it detected and engaged the drone heading in the direction of the vessel, the US Defense Department said in a statement.

“There were no US casualties or any damage to the ship,” the statement added.

Mohammed Ali al-Huthi, a member of the Huthis’ Supreme Political Council, said on social media that the aircraft belonged to the group and that it “will reserve the right to respond to the destruction of its drone.”

The drone shootdown is related to the latest round of fighting between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas, which carried out a shock cross-border attack from Gaza on 7 October that Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people.

Israel responded with a relentless air, land and naval assault on Hamas-controlled Gaza that the territory’s health ministry says has killed more than 11,500 people.

Those deaths have provoked widespread anger in the Middle East and provided an impetus for attacks against American troops in the region as well as Israel by armed groups opposed to both.

The Huthis said last week that they shot down an MQ-9 drone that was spying as part of Washington’s support for Israel, while American forces in Iraq and Syria have faced dozens of rocket and drone attacks in recent weeks that US officials have blamed on Iran-backed groups.

The US Navy shot down multiple missiles and drones last month that it said were fired by the Huthis, who seized Yemeni capital Sanaa in 2014 and control much of country.

US forces also have carried out strikes on sites in Syria the Pentagon said were linked to Iran on three separate occasions in recent weeks, but the attacks on American forces have continued.