US forces sink ‘Houthi’ boats in Red Sea after attack on Maersk vessel

The United States military says it has sunk three boats waging an attack on a container ship in the Red Sea as it continues its patrol mission to counter threats from Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

Helicopters from two US warships – the USS Eisenhower and USS Gravely – shot at the “Iranian-backed Houthi small boats” in self-defence on Sunday morning while responding to an SOS call from the Singapore-flagged vessel Maersk Hangzhou, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said. The US helicopters sunk three of the boats, killing several of their crew, it said. A fourth boat escaped.

Maersk Hangzhou issued its distress call after it was fired at by the Houthi boats, which came as close as 20 meters and also tried to board it, CENTCOM said in a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter.

As the US helicopters responded, they were also shot at by the Houthi boats, prompting them to return fire, added the CENTCOM statement.

It was the second alleged Houthi attack on the Maersk Hangzhou in less than 24 hours. Late on Saturday night, CENTCOM said it shot down two ballistic missiles fired by the Houthis as it responded to a separate missile strike on Maersk Hangzhou.

In the wake of the attacks, global shipping giant Maersk, which owns the vessel, said it was suspending its operations in the Red Sea for 48 hours, highlighting the continued threat to commercial vessels in the region.

Amid Israel’s war on Gaza, Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis have repeatedly targeted vessels they believe are linked to Israel travelling in the Red Sea, pushing major global shipping companies, such as Maersk, to abandon the waterway. The Houthis have said they will continue their strikes until Israel’s attacks on Gaza stop.

The US on December 19 formed a global naval task force to safeguard shipping in the contentious waters, through which some 12 percent of global trade passes.

The presence of the US-led coalition at first seemed to restore some confidence in the route, with several large firms announcing plans to resume operations there.

However, Houthi attacks on passing vessels have continued, with the group increasingly using antiship ballistic missiles to target vessels, US Vice Admiral Brad Cooper told The Associated Press news agency. “We are clear-eyed that the Houthi reckless attacks will likely continue,” Cooper said.

(Aljazeera)