A US fighter jet shot down a missile fired at an American warship in the Red Sea following Britain and America’s strikes in Yemen.
Iran-backed Houthi rebels appear to be striking back after the UK and US blitzed their strongholds last week.
AFPA missile was fired at American destroyer USS Laboon in the Red Sea on Sunday[/caption]
SWNSThe UK and US blitzed Houthi targets in Yemen last week (RAF Jet heading to Yemen)[/caption]
The UK and US mission in Yemen last week
The attacks on Houthi targets failed to destroy all of the terror proxy group’s weapons – sparking fears of more Red Sea attacks.
On Thursday a meticulously planned operation led by Britain and America saw allied destroy 60 military targets overnight.
A fresh US airstrike followed on Saturday at the Red Sea port city of Hodeida after the Houthi rebels threatened to hit back.
Thursday was the first time strikes had been launched against the Houthis following months of brutal Red Sea attacks.
It marked a dramatic escalation in the crisis that for weeks has been threatening to ignite an all-out war across the Middle East over Israel’s ongoing battle with Hamas.
And on Sunday the Houthi group appeared to retaliate by aiming an anti-cruise missile at the American destroyer USS Laboon.
The US military Central Command said the fire was aimed at the ship, stationed in the south of the Red Sea.
The missile reportedly came from Hodeida, the same port city targeted on Saturday.
US officials said: “An anti-ship cruise missile was fired from Iranian-backed Houthi militant areas of Yemen toward USS Laboon.
“There were no injuries or damage reported.”
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the “targeted strikes” on Thursday were “limited, necessary and proportionate action in self-defence”.
The Houthis announced afterwards that five militants were killed and six injured in the overnight strikes.
Their furious forces vowed to retaliate to a scale “beyond the imagination” and told the US and Britain they had made a “huge mistake launching the war in Yemen”.
Houthi spokesman Muhammad Al-Bukhaiti also added on Al-Arabi TV that “American interests will be a target for our forces wherever they are”.
US officials then revealed up to 30 per cent of rebel weaponry survived despite precision-guided strikes in Yemen on more than 60 targets.
The British Typhoon war jets and American Lightning stealth bombers backed by cruise missiles hit 90 per cent of them in 30 locations, it was said.
Iran, however, had supplied the Houthis with scores of mobile launch platforms that remain hidden from satellites and spy planes.
US intelligence admitted yesterday that around three quarters of the terror army’s hardware remained intact.
Two US officials said even after hitting more than 60 missile and drone targets with more than 150 precision-guided munitions, 20-30 per cent of Houthi weaponry survived.
On Saturday the US then targeted a radar site belonging to the Iran-backed militia in what they called “follow-up action” on a “specific military” base.
The destroyer USS Carney launched Tomahawk missiles at the Houthi stronghold after President Joe Biden warned he would “not hesitate” to launch further attacks.
US Central Command said the radar site had been responsible for putting commercial ships in the Red Sea at risk.
Houthi media channels then reported that Al-Dailami airbase in the rebel-held capital city of Sanaa was hit.
But they claimed the strike caused “no significant” damage or casualties ahead of Sunday’s fresh sea ambush.
It comes as Houthi rebels “mistakenly” fired a missile at a tanker thinking it was a UK vessel on Friday.
The rocket landed in the Red Sea around 400-500 metres away from the Panama-flagged ship.
Separate reports have since emerged of mysterious small boat fleets tailing ships in the area.
UKMTO said two small vessels followed one ship for over an hour on Friday in what was described as a “suspicious approach”.
The escalation of Red Sea chaos follows more than 27 attacks on ships in the area in what the Houthis say is a protest against Israel’s military operations in Gaza since November 19.
The Iran-backed Houthi rebels have attacked dozens of vessels in the region in retaliation for Israel’s offensive inside GazaRex
RexHouthi’s drone and missiles are still intact despite the US and UK blitz in Yemen[/caption]
Sky NewsThursday’s blitz in Yemen[/caption]
SWNSRoyal Navy destroyer HMS Diamond alongside USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier in the Red Sea[/caption]
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