US-led Red Sea coalition destroys Houthi drone, boat

This handout grab of a video taken and released by the French ‘Etat-Major des Armees’ on Mar. 20, 2024, shows a Houthi UAV threatening commercial navigation prior to its destruction by a French army helicopter from a French destroyer patrolling in The Red Sea. (AFP)

• The EU’s Red Sea naval mission said on Wednesday that a French Navy helicopter shot down a Houthi drone flying over the southern Red Sea near commercial vessels
• The Houthis have yet to claim responsibility for launching the drone or boat

AL-MUKALLA: The US-led naval coalition in the Red Sea has destroyed a Houthi drone and a remote-controlled, explosive-laden boat targeting merchant vessels off the Yemen coast.
US Central Command said early on Thursday that its forces had destroyed a remote-controlled boat, while an aircraft from the US-led coalition shot down a drone launched by the Yemeni militia on Wednesday at international commercial and naval ships.
“It was determined these weapons presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and US Navy ships in the region,” CENTCOM said.
The EU’s Red Sea naval mission said on Wednesday that a French Navy helicopter shot down a Houthi drone flying over the southern Red Sea near commercial vessels. The Houthis have yet to claim responsibility for launching the drone or boat.
Since November, the militia has launched hundreds of missiles, drones, and remote-controlled boats against foreign commercial and naval ships in the Red Sea, Bab Al-Mandab Strait, and Gulf of Aden, claiming to be acting in support of Palestinians.
Meanwhile, the Houthis face growing condemnation over their deadly house destruction in Al-Bayda.
Yemen’s internationally recognized government urged the world, including the UN and other international bodies, on Thursday to designate the militia as terrorists, and to condemn Houthi human rights violations, such as the recent demolition of homes in Radaa, Al-Bayda, which left 35 civilians injured or dead.
In a letter to the UN Security Council, the UN secretary-general, and international delegates at the UN, the Yemeni government requested the UN take “concrete and strict measures” against the Houthis to put an end to their abuses in Yemen.
“While the terrorist Houthi militias falsely claim to be protecting the Palestinian people in Gaza, they continue to commit the same atrocities and heinous crimes against the Yemeni people that the Israeli occupation forces do against Palestinians.”
At the same time, foreign embassies in Yemen, as well as local and international human rights organizations, have condemned the Houthis for damaging people’s houses in Radaa and urged them to stop their attacks.
In a post on X, the British Embassy described “harrowing” photographs of Houthi damage to houses in Radaa, and expressed condolences to the families of the victims. “We condemn the attack in the strongest terms. More tragic loss of life from reckless Houthi attacks.”
Steven Fagin, the US ambassador to Yemen, called the Houthi destruction of houses “a brutal attack,” and said that the Yemeni militia continues to mistreat Yemenis in areas they control.
“This act of violence serves as a grim reminder of the ongoing suffering and instability that persists in areas controlled by the Houthis. The people of Yemen deserve to live in a safe and secure environment, free from the threat of violence and oppression, and the United States remains committed to supporting peace in Yemen,” the US ambassador said in a statement on X.
Human Rights Watch also called on the Houthis to immediately investigate the destruction of homes, bring those responsible to justice, and compensate those affected.
“Houthi forces in Yemen are continuing their brutal treatment of civilians under their rule by deliberately detonating a residential home and apparently killing at least nine people from the same family,” Michael Page, deputy Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.