Houthis attack US warships after US strikes in Yemen

A multiple-missile attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on two US warships has been thwarted, the Pentagon has said.

At least eight drones, five anti-ship ballistic missiles and three anti-ship cruise missiles were aimed at the USS Stockdale and the USS Spruance on Monday.

The vessels shot down the projectiles and were “not damaged and no personnel were hurt,” Pentagon press secretary Air Force Major Gen Pat Ryder told reporters on Tuesday.

The attack followed a series of airstrikes made by the US Central Command against Houthi weapons storage bases in Yemen.

The attack happened while the Iranian-backed rebel group were travelling through the Bab el-Mandeb strait, a waterway between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

Al-Masirah TV, the main television news outlet run by Yemen’s Houthi movement, said that a series of airstrikes had targeted two US warships and a third vessel in the Arabian Sea.

The group’s military spokesman, Yahya al-Sarea, said in a statement on X that the rebels had “successfully” bombarded the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier with a number of cruise missiles.

Ryder said he was “not aware of any attacks” on the Abraham Lincoln vessel.

“We will continue to make clear to the Houthis there will be consequences for their illegal and reckless attacks,” he said.

The Houthis are part of a network of armed groups in the Middle East backed by Iran that includes Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza.

They have repeatedly targeted commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November 2023. They have sunk two vessels, seized a third of targeted ships and killed crew members.

They say they are acting in support of the Palestinians in the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

They have claimed, often falsely, that they are targeting ships only linked to Israel, the US or the UK.

Earlier this year, the US, UK and 12 other nations launched Operation Prosperity Guardian to protect Red Sea shipping lanes against the Houthis.

In October, the US military said it had launched strikes on 15 Houthi targets in Yemen, with several explosions reported in the capital Sanaa.

It has previously said it aims to degrade the Houthis’ ability to target shipping.