Attack in the Red Sea
US destroyer shoots down 14 Houthi drones
December 16, 2023, 8:58 p.m
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Since the beginning of the war between Israel and the radical Islamic Hamas, the Houthi militia in Yemen has regularly fired drones and rockets at Israel. Merchant ships are also targeted by terrorists. The US destroyer “USS Carney” can prevent a new attack.
A US warship in the Red Sea intercepted 14 drones fired from Yemen. The disposable attack drones were shot down by the destroyer “USS Carney”, explained the US Military Command for the Middle East (Centcom) on X. There were no reports of damage to ships or injuries, it said. The drones were fired from areas in Yemen controlled by the Houthi militias. The partners in the region had been “warned of the threat”.
Since the beginning of the war between Israel and the radical Islamic Hamas, the Iran-aligned Houthi militia in Yemen has regularly attacked Israel and ships in the Red Sea with drones and missiles. The world’s largest container shipping company MSC announced that it no longer wanted to sail through the strait between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The Swiss-based shipping company said the decision was taken because the Houthis had increased their attacks.
On Friday, the rebels in Yemen said they had attacked the MSC “Palatium III” with a drone in the Strait of Bab al-Mandab at the southern end of the Red Sea in response to the Gaza war. There was fire damage and the ship needed repairs, MSC said. There were no injuries. The shipping company wants to route some ships around the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa. This extends the journey times of these ships by a few days.
On Friday, the German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd and the Danish shipping company Maersk announced that they would initially suspend their trips through the Red Sea. The French shipping company CMA CGM is also taking the step. “The situation continues to deteriorate and concerns about security are increasing,” the French said in a statement. The development also means higher insurance premiums against war risks for shipowners. This leads to additional costs of several tens of thousands of US dollars for a seven-day passage in the Red Sea.