Yemen’s Houthi rebels launched a missile at a US warship patrolling the Gulf of Aden on Friday, forcing the ship to shoot down the projectile.
The attack on the US warship, the destroyer USS Carney, marked a new escalation in the largest at-sea confrontation the US Navy has seen in the Middle East in decades, as Houthi missile strikes set fire to another commercial vessel during the night from Friday to Saturday.
Early Saturday local time, US forces carried out a strike against a Houthi anti-ship missile that was aimed at the Red Sea and ready for launch, US military Central Command said.
The Houthis’ Al-Masirah satellite news channel said the strikes took place near the port city of Hodeida, but did not provide a damage assessment.
The Carney attack represents the first time the Houthis have directly targeted a U.S. warship since the rebels began their attacks on shipping in October, a U.S. official said on condition of anonymity because of no authorization. was given to discuss the incident.
Later on Friday, the United Kingdom’s Maritime Operations Service, which oversees Middle East waterways, admitted that a ship had been hit by a missile and was on fire in the Gulf from Aden.
Houthi military spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Saree did not acknowledge the attack on the Carney, but claimed responsibility for the missile attack on the commercial vessel that set it on fire. He identified the vessel as the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker Marlin Luanda.
Central command confirmed late Friday that the Marlin Luanda had been hit by an anti-ship ballistic missile fired from Yemen. The Carney and other coalition ships responded and provided assistance to the stricken ship. Central command said no injuries were reported.