U.S. strikes Yemen-based Houthis again, hits anti-ship missiles, officials say
Officials said the missiles presented an imminent threat to merchant and U.S. Navy ships
The U.S. launched a new strike against the Yemen-based Houthis on Tuesday, hitting anti-ship missiles in the third assault on the group in recent days, two U.S. officials told The Associated Press.
According to the officials, the overnight strike destroyed four Houthi ballistic missiles that presented an imminent threat to merchant and U.S. navy ships in the region. The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss details of a military operation.
The strike came as the Houthis attacked the Malta-flagged bulk carrier Zografia in the Red Sea. The vessel had been heading north to the Suez Canal when it was attacked, the Greek Shipping and Island Policy Ministry said.
In a statement, Houthi military spokesperson Brig.-Gen. Yahya Saree said it had a "direct hit" on the Zografia ship that was heading to Israel with naval missiles. A security firm and two Greek shipping ministry sources said the bulk carrier sustained material damage but no injuries.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan warned Tuesday that addressing the ongoing Houthi threat was an "all hands on deck" problem that the U.S. and allies must address to minimize impact on the global economy.
The maritime attacks, coupled with ongoing threats from other Iran-backed militants in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, mean that allies must "be vigilant against the possibility that in fact, rather than heading towards de-escalation, we are on a path of escalation that we have to manage," Sullivan said.
Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping have continued even after the U.S. and Britain launched an initial wave of strikes to degrade Houthi capabilities last week.
But unlike the initial U.S. strikes last week, which were against pre-planned targets, Tuesday's strikes appeared to show that the U.S. military would proactively go after Houthi military capabilities as they are detected. If confirmed, that would usher in a far more assertive posture for the U.S. military toward the Houthis.
The Houthis, who control the most populous parts of Yemen, have claimed their attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden are aimed at supporting the Palestinians in Israel's offensive in Gaza.
But they have frequently targeted vessels with tenuous or no clear links to Israel, imperilling shipping in a key route for global trade.
They've vowed to keep up attacks despite the strikes last week against radar and missile capabilities. Some experts believe they welcome a conflict with the U.S. and its allies.
A U.S. official told Reuters that Joe Biden's administration is expected to announce plans to relist the Houthis as specially designated global terrorists.
U.S. Navy seizes missile parts
Amid the latest attacks, U.S. Navy SEALs seized Iranian-made missile parts and other weaponry from a ship bound for the Houthi rebels in a raid last week that saw two of its commandos go missing, the U.S. military said Tuesday.
The raid marks the latest seizure by the U.S. Navy and its allies of weapons shipments bound for the rebels.
The SEAL raid happened Thursday, with the commandos launching from the USS Lewis B. Puller backed by drones and helicopters, with the U.S. military's Central Command saying it took place in the Arabian Sea.
The SEALs travelled in small special operations combat craft driven by a naval special warfare crew to get to the boat. As they were boarding it in rough seas, around 8 p.m. local time, one SEAL got knocked off by high waves and a teammate went in after him. Both remain missing.
The SEALs found cruise and ballistic missile components, including propulsion and guidance devices, as well as warheads, Central Command said, noting that air defence parts also were found.
"Initial analysis indicates these same weapons have been employed by the Houthis to threaten and attack innocent mariners on international merchant ships transiting in the Red Sea," Central Command said in a statement.
Images released by the U.S. military analyzed by the Associated Press showed components resembling rocket motors and others previously seized. It also included what appeared to be an anti-ship cruise missile with a small turbojet engine, a type used by the Houthis and Iran.
Included in the photos was a warhead also seen in Iranian anti-ship missiles that are based off an earlier Chinese design, said Fabian Hinz, a missile expert and research fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.
"Looking at the size and the robustness of the thing, it looks a lot like an anti-ship warhead," Hinz said.
Hinz also noted the warhead in the photo has a sticker reading "GHAD." Iran has an anti-ship missile called the Ghadir.
The U.S. Navy ultimately sank the ship carrying the weapons after deeming it unsafe, the U.S. military said. The ship's crew of 14 people have been detained.
The Houthis have not acknowledged the seizure, and Iran's mission to the United Nations did not respond to a request for comment. However, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei praised the attacks by the Houthis.
A UN resolution bans arms transfers to the Houthi rebels. Tehran has long denied arming the rebels, despite physical evidence, numerous seizures and experts tying the weapons back to Iran.
Houthis struck U.S.-owned ship
Tuesday's events come a day after the Houthi rebels struck a U.S.-owned ship just off the coast of Yemen in the Gulf of Aden.
The Houthis' attacks have roiled global shipping, targeting a crucial corridor linking Asian and Mideast energy and cargo shipments to the Suez Canal onward to Europe.
Saree claimed Monday's attack in a recorded television address that aired that night.
"The Yemeni armed forces consider all American and British ships and warships participating in the aggression against our country as hostile targets," Saree said in a recorded television address.
The U.K. Maritime Trade Operations, which oversees Mideast waters, said Monday's attack happened some 177 kilometres southeast of Aden. It said the ship's captain reported that the "port side of vessel hit from above by a missile."
Private security firms Ambrey and Dryad Global told AP that the vessel was the Eagle Gibraltar, a Marshall Islands-flagged ship.
The U.S. military later acknowledged the strike, blaming the Houthis for the assault and saying there were no injuries or significant damage reported and that the ship was continuing its journey.
On Sunday, the Houthis launched an anti-ship cruise missile toward the USS Laboon, an American destroyer in the Red Sea. The attack was the first U.S.-acknowledged fire by the Houthis since the U.S. and allied nations began striking the rebels on Friday.
With files from Reuters