US says its destroyer downs 14 drones in Red Sea launched from Yemen

This image obtained from the US Defense Department shows the American guided-missile destroyer USS Carney as it transited the Suez Canal on November 26, 2023 – Copyright AFP AHMAD GHARABLI

An American destroyer on Saturday shot down more than a dozen drones in the Red Sea launched from Huthi-controlled areas of Yemen, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said.

“The Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS CARNEY… operating in the Red Sea, successfully engaged 14 unmanned aerial systems launched as a drone wave from Huthi-controlled areas of Yemen,” CENTCOM said on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The aerial vehicles were “assessed to be one-way attack drones and were shot down with no damage to ships in the area or reported injuries,” according to the statement.

Yemen’s Iran-backed Huthi rebels have launched a series of drone and missile strikes targeting Israel since Hamas militants poured over the border into Israel on October 7, killing around 1,140 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures. Around 240 people were kidnapped in the attacks. 

Vowing to destroy Hamas and bring back the hostages, Israel launched a massive military offensive that the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry says has killed at least 18,800 people, mostly women and children, according to the latest toll from the Hamas government in Gaza.

The Huthi rebels have threatened to attack any vessels heading to Israeli ports unless food and medicine are allowed into the besieged Gaza Strip.

The latest attacks mark a significant escalation in the threat to shipping in the area.