:quality(85)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/infobae/WPHAKWOFTRGWNC6NYTKEAVBLB4.jpg "The US intercepted and destroyed Houthi weapons in the Red Sea and accused the Iranian regime of supporting the rebels")
US Military Intercepts and Destroys Houthi Weapons in Red Sea, Accuses Iran of Supporting Rebels
The US military announced this Thursday that it intercepted and destroyed a drone and an anti-ship ballistic missile launched by Yemen’s Houthi rebels in the southern Red Sea, where they have intensified their attacks on ships in response to the US Defense Forces operation. Israel on Gaza. According to a statement from the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), the incident occurred between 5:45 p.m. and 6:10 p.m. (local time) and caused no injuries or damage to ships sailing in the area.
“This attacks demonstrate the continuing threat that the Houthis pose to freedom of navigation and international trade,” said CENTCOM, which accused Iran’s regime of providing arms and support to the rebels.
The military spokesman for the Houthis, Yahya Sari, claimed responsibility for the attack on a commercial ship, the ‘MSC United’, and said that it was “in response to the refusal of its crew to respond to calls from the naval forces and warning messages.”
In a message broadcast on his Telegram channel, Sari assured that the Houthis also launched “adequate naval missiles” and “several drones against military targets” in different “areas of occupied Palestine,” expressing his “continued support for the Palestinian people as part of their religious, moral and humanitarian duty.”
Likewise, he warned that they will continue attacks on Israeli ships “or those heading to the ports of occupied Palestine” until food and medicine are allowed to enter civilians in Gaza, and he pledged to respect the rest of maritime traffic.
The Houthis, who have controlled the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, and other parts of the north and west of the country since 2015, have increased their actions in the Red Sea after the start of the Israeli military offensive on Gaza. As part of their operations, they captured a ship – the ‘Galaxy Leader’ – and damaged at least two other vessels with their missiles and drones.
The situation has caused several companies – among them four of the five largest in the world in maritime transport – to have suspended their activities along this maritime route, vital for international trade, or have diverted their ships along longer routes that involve circling the continent African around the Cape of Good Hope.
Meanwhile, the United States imposed new sanctions this Thursday against an individual and three entities from Yemen and Turkey for being part of an international network with which Iran finances the Houthi rebels.
Those sanctioned are Nabil Al-Hadha, an individual who serves as president of the Association of Currency Exchangers in the areas of Sana’a controlled by the Houthis, as well as the Al Aman exchange houses in Turkey and Nabco and Al Rawda in Yemen, reported in a statement the Treasury Department.
According to the United States, this individual and entities have brokered the transfer of “millions of dollars” from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard to checking accounts controlled by the Houthis.
The US sanctions mean that the properties that these individuals and entities may have in the US will be blocked and transactions with them by US citizens or financial institutions are prohibited.
“Today’s action underscores our determination to restrict the illicit flow of funds to the Houthis, who continue to carry out dangerous attacks against international shipping and threaten to further destabilize the region,” the Treasury undersecretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Brian E. Nelson.
With information from Europa Press and EFE