Yemen’s Houthis say they targeted US ship in Gulf of Aden

SANAA, Yemen

Yemen’s Houthi group said Thursday that they struck a US vessel in the Gulf of Aden.

Speaking to Al-Masirah television, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said the attack was in response to US and UK aggression against Yemen and also to aid the Palestinian people.

Sarea said the assault was carried out using cruise missiles.

Earlier, the US announced that it destroyed two Houthi anti-ship missiles in the region.

“As part of ongoing multi-national efforts to protect freedom of navigation and prevent attacks on maritime vessels in the Red Sea, on Jan. 18 U.S. Central Command forces conducted strikes on two Houthi anti-ship missiles that were aimed into the Southern Red Sea and were prepared to launch,” said the United States Central Command (CENTCOM).

It said US forces determined that the missiles were an imminent threat to merchant vessels and US Navy ships in the region.

“U.S. forces subsequently struck and destroyed the missiles in self-defense,” it added.

The Houthis said their attacks aim to pressure Israel to halt its deadly war on the Gaza Strip, which has killed at least 24,620 people and injured 61,830 others since an Oct. 7 cross-border offensive by the Palestinian group Hamas.

Israel says around 1,200 people were killed in the Hamas attack and hundreds more were taken back to Gaza as hostages.

The US and UK have launched airstrikes on Houthi targets for one week in retaliation for the attacks, which have created fears of a new bout of inflation and supply chain disruption.

The Red Sea is one of the world's most frequently used sea routes for oil and fuel shipments. It is used to transit between Egypt's Suez Canal and the Gulf of Aden, allowing ships to avoid the much costlier and longer route across the southern coast of Africa.

*Writing by Seda Sevencan