US military says Houthis fired missiles and drones from Yemen

Yemen’s Houthis launched two anti-ship ballistic missiles and one drone over the Gulf of Aden, as well as four drones over the Red Sea, the US military said on Friday.

The Yemeni group said it had launched a missile strike on a US aircraft carrier in the Red Sea in response to joint American and British attacks on Thursday.

Three of the drones fired over the Red Sea were destroyed and one landed in the sea, according to the US military’s Central Command. It also said the drone fired over the Gulf of Aden had been destroyed.

No damage or injuries were reported.

On Friday, the Houthis said they launched a missile attack on the US aircraft carrier the USS Dwight D Eisenhower in the Red Sea in response to US and UK air strikes in parts of Yemen that killed 16 people and injured 42 others.

The group’s spokesman Yahya Sarea stated the attack against the ship was “direct and accurate”.

He said the US and UK attacked the Yemeni provinces of Sanaa, Hodeidah and Taiz. Strikes in Hodeidah targeted the port of Salif, a radio building in Al Hawk district, Ghalifa camp and two houses, Mr Sarea said.

The UK Ministry of Defence said its aircraft bombed Hodeidah and farther south in Ghulayfiqah.

It described its targets as “buildings identified as housing drone ground control facilities and providing storage for very long-range drones, as well as surface-to-air weapons”.

The US and the UK have launched strikes against the Houthis since January, with Washington also carrying out attacks on its own since.

The Houthis have stepped up attacks on shipping lanes in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, demanding that Israel end the war in Gaza, which has killed more than 36,000 Palestinians.

The war began after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, killing about 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostage.

The Houthis have launched more than 50 attacks on shipping lanes, killed three sailors, seized one vessel and sunk another since November, according to the US Maritime Administration.

Last week, they attacked a ship carrying grain to Iran, the rebels’ main benefactor.