The U.S. Navy shot down multiple drones and missiles fired by Iranian-backed terrorists in Yemen on Thursday, October 19, 2023. The USS Carney, a destroyer, was sailing in the northern Red Sea when it detected and shot down three cruise missiles and multiple drones that were launched by the Houthis in Yemen and were potentially headed toward Israel.
“We cannot say for certain what these missiles and drones were targeting, but they were launched from Yemen heading north along the Red Sea, potentially towards targets in Israel,” said Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, a spokesperson for the Department of Defense.
Ryder also said that the U.S. Navy’s decision to shoot down the projectiles was part of “the integrated air and missile defense architecture that we built in the Middle East and that we are prepared to utilize whenever necessary to protect our partners and our interest in this important region.”
No one was hurt or killed during the incident.
Former President Trump designated the Houthis, also known as Ansarallah, as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) under the leadership of former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. But the Biden administration quickly reversed the terrorist designation after taking over in 2021.
“These designations will provide additional tools to confront terrorist activity and terrorism by Ansarallah, a deadly Iran-backed militia group in the Gulf region,” Pompeo said in a statement at the time. “The designations are intended to hold Ansarallah accountable for its terrorist acts, including cross-border attacks threatening civilian populations, infrastructure, and commercial shipping.”
The Houthis “have received training and military equipment from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC),” the Counter Terrorism Project reported.
The report also revealed that when the Houthis occupied Sana’a, the capital of Yemen, the first thing that they did was free terrorists from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and from Hezbollah.
🚨BREAKING: US WARSHIP ATTACKED FROM YEMEN
A US Navy warship operating in the Middle East intercepted multiple missiles fired by Iranian-backed Houthi militants in Yemen.
While U.S officials said they cannot 100% confirm the warship was the target, it comes amid increased… pic.twitter.com/xnsjHR5Ruv
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) October 19, 2023
