The United States military destroyed Houthi “small boats” on Sunday morning that attempted to hijack a merchant vessel in the Southern Red Sea.
The vessel, called the Maersk Hangzhou, issued its second distress call in less than 24 hours at 6:30 a.m. Sanaa time to report that it was under attack by four “Iranian-backed” Houthi boats. The Houthi boats fired small arms weapons at the vessel, got within 20 meters of the ship, and attempted to board, U.S. Central Command said in a post to X.
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U.S. Navy helicopters from the USS Eisenhower and USS Gravely responded to the distress call, and “in the process of issuing verbal calls to the small boats, the small boats fired upon the U.S. helicopters with crew served weapons and small arms.”
The Navy returned fire in self-defense, sinking three of the four boats. The fourth boat escaped, and there was no damage to U.S. personnel or equipment, Central Command confirmed.
Iranian-backed Houthi small boats attack merchant vessel and U.S. Navy helicopters in Southern Red Sea
On Dec. 31 at 6:30am (Sanaa time) the container ship MAERSK HANGZHOU issued a second distress call in less than 24 hours reporting being under attack by four Iranian-backed… pic.twitter.com/pj8NAzjbVF
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) December 31, 2023
The first distress call from the Maersk Hangzhou came at 8:30 p.m. Sanaa time on Saturday, reporting that they were struck by a missile while transiting in the Southern Red Sea. The USS Gravely and USS Laboon responded, finding no injuries and declaring the vessel seaworthy.
“While responding, the USS GRAVELY shot down two anti-ship ballistic missiles fired from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen toward the ships,” Central Command said in a post on X on Saturday night.
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Central Command said Saturday night’s incident was the 23rd illegal attack by the Houthis on international shipping since Nov. 19. Maersk was one of several major shipping companies to temporarily reroute its vessels to avoid the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, two areas off the coast of Yemen, due to the Houthis.
The Houthis launched these attacks in response to Israel’s war in Gaza following the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks that left roughly 1,200 people dead. U.S. officials have said Iran has provided the Houthis with the critical intelligence needed for them to carry out the attacks.
