US Navy Shoots Down Iranian Drone Launched From Houthi-Controlled Yemen

The United States intercepted and shot down an Iranian-produced drone near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in the southern Red Sea on Wednesday.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced in a post on Xthat the unmanned aerial vehicle was shot down by the USS Carney, an Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer, at 11:00 (Sanaa time) on November 29.

CENTCOM identified the drone as an Iranian-produced KAS-04 and said it was launched from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.

“Although its intentions are not known, the UAV was heading toward the warship,” added the report.

According to CENTCOM, at the time of the incident, “the USS Carney was escorting the USNS SUPPLY (Oiler) and another US flagged and crewed ship carrying military equipment to the region.”

The vessels and their crews sustained no damage or injury, the report said.

The incident came a week after the USS Thomas Hudner, another American warship deployed in the region, shot down several one-way attack drones launched by Iran-backed Yemeni Houthis.

Since Hamas’s deadly onslaught on Israel on October 7, Yemen’s Houthis, backed by the Iranian regime, have launched several drone and missile attacks against US and Israeli targets in the region.

Earlier in the month, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) also shot down a cruise missile over the Red Sea before it could infiltrate into the Israeli territory.

The missile, which targeted Israel’s southernmost city of Eilat, was believed to have been launched by Yemen’s Houthis, The Times of Israel reported.

Though the Islamic Republic has avoided any direct involvement in the Israel-Hamas conflict, the regime has used its proxy groups in the region such as Houthis and Hezbollah to attack Israel and American targets.