US shoots three Houthi drones, hours after warning of environmental disaster from cargo ship hit by rebels

Three attack drones of Houthi rebels were shot down by the American forces near the commercial ships in the Red Sea on Friday (Feb 23), hours after the United States warned of an environmental disaster from the cargo ship, which was hit by Houthi rebels.

The US military said that they downed three attack drones and even destroyed seven anti-ship cruise missiles, which were positioned on land.

For months, Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis have been targeting shipping and their attacksremainpersistent despite American and British armies makingrepeated strikes with the aim of degrading the ability of rebels to threaten an important global trade route.

Early on Friday (Feb 23), US forces "shot down three Huthi one-way attack (drones) near several commercial ships operating in the Red Sea. There was no damage to any ships," said the Central Command (CENTCOM), onsocial media.

In a statement, issued after hours, CENTCOM claimed that US forces destroyed "seven Iranian-backed Huthi mobile anti-ship cruise missiles that were prepared to launch towards the Red Sea."

It added that those strikes, which were carried out between 12:30 p.m. and 7:15 p.m. Sanaa time, were launched in self-defence.

"CENTCOM forces identified these missiles in Huthi-controlled areas of Yemen and determined that they presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and to the US Navy ships in the region," said US forces in a statement.

US warns of environmental disaster

US Central Command on Friday (Feb 23) said that a cargo ship, which was abandoned in the Gulf of Aden after the Houthi rebels attacked it, was taken on water and left a huge oil slick which has increased the risk of an environmental disaster.

Rubymar, which is a Lebanese-operated, Belize-flagged and British-registered cargo ship was carrying combustible fertiliser and had suffered damages in the missile strike by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

The crew members of the vessel had evacuated to Djibouti after a missile hit the ship and water entered the engine room as well as in its stern to sag, stated its operator, the Blue Fleet Group.

Watch:US military says Iran continues to supply arms to Houthis | Red Sea attacks can escalate

CENTCOM stated that the ship is anchored but it has left an 18-mile oil slick.

"The M/V Rubymar was transporting over 41,000 tons of fertilizer when it was attacked, which could spill into the Red Sea and worsen this environmental disaster," CENTCOM said in a post on X.

The ship's operator confirmed that it is likely to get towed to Djibouti this week.

(With inputs from agencies)