British and American Navy forces intervened Tuesday evening in one of the largest missile attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels targeting Red Sea shipping.
“On Jan. 9, at approximately 9:15 p.m. (Sanaa time), Iranian-backed Houthis launched a complex attack … into the Southern Red Sea, towards international shipping lanes where dozens of merchant vessels were transiting,” U.S. Central Command said.
No damage was reported to vessels after 21 total drones and missiles — including two anti-ship cruise missiles, and one anti-ship ballistic missile — were shot down, according to the statement.
Last week, the U.S. and its allies warned the Houthis that if they continue to threaten lives and disrupt trade flows in the Red Sea, they will face as-yet-unspecified “consequences.” They also strongly condemned the attacks against commercial vessels in the Red Sea area.
The Shia militant group previously said that it was targeting ships with links to Israel, in a bid to force an end to the Israeli assault on Gaza. But the attacks on the vital shipping route in the narrow Bab-el-Mandeb Strait are affecting other nations and global trade flows more widely.
At the end of December, the U.S. Navy destroyed three boats carrying Houthi rebels after fighters attempted to board a container ship.
