In an escalation of the maritime conflict linked to the war in Gaza, U.S. military forces announced on Sunday that they opened fire on Houthi rebels after their attack on a cargo ship in the Red Sea, killing several of them. A White House official said, “We will act in defense of ourselves in the future.”
Attack on the Cargo Ship
In a series of statements, U.S. Central Command reported that the crew of the USS Gravely destroyer first fired on two ship-targeting ballistic missiles launched by Houthi rebels at the Singapore-flagged Maersk Hangzhou late Saturday evening, after the ship had reported being targeted earlier that evening while transiting the southern Red Sea.
Attack on the Ship by Small Boats
Then, four small boats attacked the same ship by opening fire with small arms early Sunday morning, and the rebels attempted to board the vessel, according to a statement from the U.S. Navy.
American Response
Subsequently, the USS Gravely destroyer and helicopters from the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier responded to the distress call from Maersk Hangzhou and issued verbal warnings to the attackers, who responded by firing upon the helicopters. “U.S. Navy helicopters returned fire in self-defense,” and three of the four boats were sunk and the individuals aboard were killed, while the fourth boat fled the area, according to U.S. Central Command. No damage to U.S. personnel or equipment, nor any casualties from the ship, were reported.
Ongoing Attacks on Vessels in the Red Sea
The Houthis acknowledged that 10 of their fighters were killed in the confrontation and warned of consequences. In Washington, the National Security Council spokesman dodged a question about the possibility of launching a preemptive strike against the Houthis to protect commercial shipping in the vital waterway. John Kirby said, “I won’t say what is on or off the table right now,” adding, “We will do what is necessary to protect shipping.” He stated that the United States has “significant national security interests in the region” and “will position the forces we need in the area to protect those interests and will act in defense of ourselves in the future.”
International Coalition to Protect Ships
Earlier this month, Washington announced the establishment of a new international coalition to protect ships traveling through the waterway. The United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles, and Spain are also included in this new maritime security mission.
Since the U.S. Department of Defense announced Operation Prosperity Guardian to counter attacks over 10 days ago, 1,200 commercial vessels have transited the Red Sea area without any attacks from drones or missiles, according to Vice Admiral Brad Cooper in an interview with the Associated Press on Saturday.
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