Yemen's Houthis claim targeting US destroyer, three military supply ships

Sanaa (The Uttam Hindu): Yemen's Houthi group announced that it had targeted a US destroyer and three military supply ships in a 'qualitative and joint military operation. "We carried out an operation targeting an American destroyer and three supply ships belonging to the US military," Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said, Xinhua news agency reported quoting the Houthi-run al-Masirah TV channel.

He identified the supply ships as the 'Stena Impeccable', the 'Maersk Saratoga', and the 'Liberty Grace' but did not disclose the name of the targeted destroyer. The operation, conducted in the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden, involved 16 ballistic and winged missiles as well as a drone, Sarea claimed. He described the strikes as 'accurate and direct.' Sarea warned that the Houthis would escalate their operations in the declared maritime operations zone, encompassing the Red Sea and Arabian Sea, until Israel halts its actions in Gaza.

"We will continue to carry out military operations at an escalating pace against Israel and the United States of America," he said. Earlier in the day, the Houthis claimed responsibility for launching a rocket at Israel, asserting it hit a 'vital target' in the Jaffa area. However, Israeli media reported that the Israel Defence Forces intercepted and destroyed the rocket, launched from northern Yemen, early on Sunday. Since November 2023, the Houthi militia, which controls much of northern Yemen, has intensified its attacks on Israeli cities and disrupted shipping in the Red Sea linked to Israel. The group has framed these actions as solidarity with Palestinians amid the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict.