Houthi Militia Launches Drones and Missiles at Ships in Red Sea

**Houthi Militia Intensifies Maritime Assaults, Targets US Warship**
In a recent surge of aggression, Yemen’s Houthi rebels have escalated their maritime attacks, launching a spate of drones and missiles at international shipping lanes off Yemen, including an attempted strike on a US warship in the Red Sea. The US Central Command (CENTCOM) reported that despite the Houthis’ aggressive maneuvers on Saturday, including the deployment of three drones and two anti-ship ballistic missiles aimed at the USS Gravely, their efforts were thwarted with no casualties or damage sustained.
The thwarted attacks are part of a broader pattern of increased Houthi hostility in maritime zones, with the militia also claiming responsibility for several strikes on both commercial and military vessels, alleging a retaliation against ships with ties to Israel. Among the purported targets were the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, an aircraft carrier, alongside commercial vessels Maina, Al-Oraiq, and Abliani, each flagged under different nations and operating in the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean.
The Houthis’ maritime aggression has been marked by the sinking and capturing of ships, as well as claims of attacking over a hundred vessels across strategic waterways such as the Red Sea, Bab Al-Mandab Strait, Gulf of Aden, and even extending their reach to the Mediterranean. These actions, according to the Houthis, aim to pressure Israel into ending its military operations in Gaza, although such claims are contested by their Yemeni adversaries who accuse the militia of leveraging the Gaza conflict for domestic support.
In response to these assaults, the United States has designated the Houthis as a terrorist organization, forming an international maritime alliance for sea protection and launching airstrikes on Houthi positions in Yemen. However, analysts, including Middle East expert Elisabeth Kendall, argue that the persistent Houthi attacks indicate both the ineffectiveness of these countermeasures and the militia’s belief in the popularity and strategic advantage of their maritime operations. Despite setbacks, the Houthis appear undeterred, with their continued assaults highlighting the asymmetric nature of the conflict and their resilience in the face of international opposition.