US destroys Houthi-controlled anti-ship missile launchers in Yemen

Shafaq News / The US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced, on Wednesday, that it has successfully destroyed two anti-ship cruise missile launchers controlled by the Houthis (Ansarallah) in Yemen.

CENTCOM confirmed on X, “In the past 24 hours, CENTCOM forces successfully destroyed two anti-ship cruise missile (ASCM) launchers in a

Houthi-controlled area of Yemen.”

“It was determined the launchers presented an imminent threat to US and coalition forces and to merchant vessels transiting the region.”

The Houthis have been launching frequent drone and missile attacks on international commercial ships in the Gulf of Aden since mid-November.

They claim solidarity with Palestinians facing Israel's actions in Gaza.

These near-daily assaults have compelled companies to redirect their ships through longer and more expensive routes around Africa, sparking concerns about potential destabilization in the Middle East amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.

In response to these attacks, the US and the UK have targeted Houthi assets.

The impact of the Houthi decision reaches halfway to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a 20-kilometer-wide passage that serves as the gateway to the Red Sea. Approximately 15% of global shipping traffic transits through this strait to and from the Suez Canal.

Despite many Western accusations suggesting Iran influences Houthis to target vessels, both Tehran and the Yemeni group deny such claims.

Iran asserted that Ansarallah makes independent decisions akin to other movements in the "Axis of Resistance," which includes Lebanon's Hezbollah, Iraqi factions, and others.

All groups within the Axis have declared that their attacks will persist until a ceasefire is achieved in the Gaza Strip, where Israel's actions have resulted in the deaths of over 37,702 Palestinians, predominantly children and women.