Washington
A US fighter aircraft shot down an anti-ship cruise missile fired from Iranian-backed Houthi terrorist areas of Yemen towards the USS Laboon, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Sunday (Jan 14).
There were no injuries or damage reported as of the last update.
"On Jan. 14 at approximately 4:45 p.m. (Sanaa time), an anti-ship cruise missile was fired from Iranian-backed Houthi militant areas of Yemen toward USS Laboon (DDG 58), which was operating in the Southern Red Sea," read the statement by CENTCOM posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
"The missile was shot down in vicinity of the coast of Hudaydah by US fighter aircraft," it added.
On Jan. 14 at approximately 4:45 p.m. (Sanaa time), an anti-ship cruise missile was fired from Iranian-backed Houthi militant areas of Yemen toward USS Laboon (DDG 58), which was operating in the Southern Red Sea. The missile was shot down in vicinity of the coast of Hudaydah by… pic.twitter.com/jftZHQhA2e
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) January 15, 2024
According to experts, the rather ambitious attack by Yemen, if successful, could have signalled the start of a full-blown regional war. USA's involvement has already made the region ripe for the spillover effect and a successful attack by the Houthis would have only added to the intensity from Washington.
Why the attack?
The United States and British forces on Friday (Jan 12) launched strikes in retaliation to the attacks by Houthi terrorists on Red Sea shipping vessels which are linked to Israel.
Australia also provided personnel support to the strikes, which involved various Tomahawk missiles and fighter jets.
After launching strikes against Houthis, the United States and its allies said that stabilising crucial Red Sea shipping lanes remains their primary goal.
Houthis claim that their attacks are aimed at showing solidarity with Palestinians amid the ongoing war between Israel and the militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Watch | Yemen's Houthis fired anti-ship missile after attack in Yemen: US
Meanwhile, Iran-backed terror outfit Hezbollah on Sunday (Jan 14) warned that the US was mistaken if it assumed that Houthis would step back owing to the strikes by Washington and its allies.
“If (US President) Biden and those with him think the Yemenis will stop supporting Gaza in the Red Sea, they are wrong and ignorant. They don’t know Yemen, its people and its leadership and its history. They don’t know anything,” said Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.
US President Joe Biden has maintained that the strikes are a "direct response" to "unprecedented" attacks launched by the Houthis.
(With inputs from agencies)