London: A US warship shot down 14 suspected attack drones over the Red Sea on Saturday, and a Royal Navy destroyer downed another drone that was targeting commercial ships, the British and American militaries said.
Houthi rebels in Yemen have launched a series of attacks on vessels in the Red Sea, one of the world’s busiest shipping routes, and have launched drones and missiles targeting Israel, as the Israel-Hamas war threatens to spread.
An image of HMS Diamond firing its Sea Viper missile to engage and shot down an aerial drone over the Red Sea.Credit: Royal Navy
US Central Command said that the destroyer USS Carney “successfully engaged 14 unmanned aerial systems” launched from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.
The drones “were shot down with no damage to ships in the area or reported injuries,” Central Command tweeted.
UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said that HMS Diamond fired a Sea Viper missile and destroyed a drone that was “targeting merchant shipping.” The overnight action is the first time the Royal Navy has shot down an aerial target in anger since the 1991 Gulf War.
Loading
Shapps said attacks on commercial ships in the global trade artery by Yemen’s Houthi rebels “represent a direct threat to international commerce and maritime security.”
“The UK remains committed to repelling these attacks to protect the free flow of global trade,” he said in a statement.
HMS Diamond was sent to the region two weeks ago as a deterrent, joining vessels from the US, France and other countries.