Houthi group says it shot down US drone above central Yemen

SANAA, Yemen

The Houthi group said Saturday that it downed a large US MQ-9 drone above central Yemen.

Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group’s forces "managed to shoot down a US MQ-9 drone while it was carrying out hostile missions over Al-Bayda province."

He explained that "the drone was brought down with a domestically made surface-to-air missile."

Saree noted that it is the 13th drone the group has successfully downed since it began support operations for the Gaza Strip in response to Israel's genocidal war.​​​​​​​

Washington has not commented on the Houthi statement.

Since the beginning of 2024, a coalition led by the US has been conducting airstrikes that it said are targeting Houthi locations in parts of Yemen in response to attacks by the group on shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The counterattacks have been occasionally met with retaliation from the group.

In solidarity with Gaza, which has been facing a genocidal war by Israel since Oct. 7, 2023, the Houthis have targeted Israeli cargo ships or those associated with Tel Aviv with missiles and drones, expressing their determination to continue operations until the end of the onslaught on the enclave.

With the intervention of Washington and London and an escalation of tensions, the Houthis announced that they consider all American and British ships military targets.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala