Drone Strikes in Yemen Confirmed by US Officials

(DailyDig.com) – On January 31, U.S. officials claimed that the US destroyed upwards of ten drones in Yemen prior to their launch in response to escalating tensions caused by the conflict in Gaza.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) claimed that the naval vessel USS Carney downed three Iranian drones barely an hour after destroying an anti-ship missile launched by the Houthis. The report didn’t clarify if the drones were intended for assault or observation.

The Houthi militants, aligned with Iran and controlling the majority of Yemen, recently unleashed a barrage of missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) on commercial ships in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea. The militants claim it was in reaction to Israel’s military actions in Gaza and as a demonstration of solidarity with the Palestinians.

Britain and the United States have added the militia to their terrorist list of organizations and struck Houthi positions in Yemen.

Hours after launching missiles at the Gravely, a US Navy destroyer, the Houthis said on January 31 that their navy vessels had attacked an American commercial ship that was in the Gulf of Aden.

On January 31, American troops destroyed a Houthi missile that threatened US aircraft, according to CENTCOM. Unlike previous airstrikes, this one didn’t aim to weaken the rebels’ capacity to endanger international trade.

The assaults on ships by the Houthis in the Red Sea disrupted commerce between Europe and Asia, causing key nations to worry about supply shortages, and heightened tensions between the Gaza conflict and the rest of the region.

This month, President Joe Biden recognized that the Houthis may not be stopping their assaults, but he still said that strikes on their targets would go on.

Prior to Israel’s invasion of the Gaza Strip, which is governed by Hamas, 1,200 Israelis were killed in a surprise attack on southern Israel by Hamas terrorists on October 7. Almost 27,000 people have been killed in Gaza during the violence since then, according to the Gaza health ministry.