U.S. military downs two Houthi drones near Yemen

Shafaq News/ U.S. military said it has shot down two drones after a series of launches by Yemen’s Houthi "Ansar Allah" group.

A third drone has crashed into the Gulf of Aden and the Iran-backed Houthis have also fired an anti-ship ballistic missile at the busy trade route, US Central Command (CENTCOM) says.

The Houthis, who control much of Yemen, have launched dozens of drone and missile strikes into the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since November, describing their attacks as an act of retaliation for the Israel-Gaza war.

In the latest attacks late on Monday and early on Tuesday, a coalition ship intercepted one drone and US forces “successfully engaged” another, CENTCOM says.

“It was determined that these weapons presented an imminent threat to both coalition forces and merchant vessels in the region,” it says in a statement.

There is no immediate comment from the Houthis.

The Houthi attacks have prompted reprisal strikes by US and British forces and the formation of an international coalition to protect the vital shipping lanes through the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea.