Yemen’s Houthis Claim Attack On US Warship

Yemen’s Houthi militia claimed on Monday to have attacked a US Navy mobile base at sea, alleging the targeting of the USS Lewis B. Puller by a ballistic missile.

The USS Lewis B. Puller functions as a floating landing base and was previously stationed in the Arabian Sea as part of US efforts to counter Iran-backed Houthi attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

Houthi military spokesperson Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree claimed that a missile was fired at the Puller in the Gulf of Aden on Sunday, but no evidence was presented to substantiate the claim.

Houthi attacks will continue “until the aggression is stopped, and the siege is lifted on the people of Palestine in the Gaza Strip,” Saree said in the statement.

However, a US defense official, speaking anonymously about intelligence matters, stated that there had been no reported attack on the Puller.

The Houthis have previously launched missiles that failed to reach their intended targets, posing risks to both land and sea.

Since November, the Houthis have targeted ships in the Red Sea amid Israel’s offensive in Gaza against Hamas. The attacks have jeopardized shipping in a critical trade route between Asia, the Middle East, and Europe.

The Iranian regime and its regional proxies have been implicated in attacks against the US and its allies almost daily since mid-October. However, the Biden administration has yet to devise an effective strategy to alter the pattern of behavior.