The Houthis announce details of a confrontation with an American battleship and threaten to ignite the Red Sea News

A group spokesman said Ansar Allah Houthis In Yemen, Muhammad Abdel Salam said on Sunday that an American warship fired missiles at a reconnaissance plane belonging to them in The Red SeaBut one of the missiles exploded near a Gabonese ship.

Abdul Salam explained in a statement, “While a reconnaissance plane belonging to the Yemeni naval forces was carrying out reconnaissance work across the Red Sea, an American warship opened fire in a hysterical manner with multiple weapons, and one of the missiles exploded near a ship heading south of the Red Sea.”

Abdel Salam indicated that the ship belongs to the Republic of Gabon, and was coming from a Russian port.

Abdel Salam warned, “The Red Sea will be a burning arena if America and its allies continue in their way of bullying, and the countries bordering the Red Sea must realize the reality of the dangers that threaten their national security.”

The Houthi spokesman stated that the threat to international maritime navigation resulted from “the militarization of the Red Sea by America and its partners who are coming to the region without any right other than to provide safety services to the ships of the Israeli enemy entity.”

At a time when the Houthi group continues its threats to target ships linked to Israel… 180 container ships change their course to avoid attacks in the Red Sea pic.twitter.com/XaOzgzgVLa

– Aljazeera.net • Al Jazeera Net (@AJArabicnet) December 23, 2023

Earlier today, the US Central Command announced – in a statement – that two anti-ship missiles were launched towards international shipping lines in the Red Sea from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen, without mentioning any injuries or damage.

On December 18, the United States announced an initiative to form multinational forces from several countries under the name “Guardian of Prosperity,” with the aim of deterring Houthi attacks in the Red Sea and their threat to maritime trade, according to Washington.

Commenting on the formation of this coalition, Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi vowed – in a televised speech last Wednesday – to target American battleships in response to any escalation in the Red Sea.

The Houthis target ships owned or operated by Israeli companies, or transporting goods to and from Israel as they pass through the Strait. Bab al-MandabIn support of the Palestinians in Gaza. This prompted nearly 180 ships to avoid sailing through the Red Sea.