Yemen’s Houthi rebels have claimed responsibility for attacks on two US aircraft carrier groups currently patrolling the Red Sea and areas off Yemen’s coast on Monday, and further announced fresh drone launches on the southern Israeli cities of Ashkelon and Eilat.
The Pentagon has not confirmed that US warships have come under attack. But the US side has tended to remain silent in the face of similar recent reports by the Houthis. However, Washington has in the recent past acknowledged Houthi efforts to target its warships with drones and missiles.
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea cited American support for Israel as it “oppresses the Palestinian people”. Describing the fresh attacks, he said: “The first targeted a vital Israeli enemy target in the occupied Ashkelon area using a Yaffa drone, while the second targeted an Israeli military target in the Umm al-Rashrash area in southern occupied Palestine using a Sammad-1 drone.”
He then announced two military operations against the US in “retaliation to the American aggression against our country and its massacres against our people.”
“Missile forces and drone units launched two cruise missiles and two drones at the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier and its associated ships in the northern part of the Red Sea. The second operation, carried out by naval forces, missile troops and drone units, targeted the USS Carl Vinson and its associated ships in the Arabian Sea, using three cruise missiles and four drones,” Sarea told the Al Masirah TV channel.
