The United States Central Command (CENTCOM, in English) reported this Friday that it attacked an anti-ship missile controlled by the Houthi rebels in Yemen that was “prepared to be launched” in the direction of the Red Sea.
On January 27, at approximately 3:45 AM (Sanaa time), United States Central Command Forces conducted an attack against a Houthi anti-ship missile directed toward the Red Sea and which was prepared to be launched. , published the command on his official profile on the social network X.
US forces identified the missile in the Houthi area and determined that it posed an “imminent threat” to merchant ships and US navy vessels in the region.
Shia rebels had fired a missile at an oil tanker
Likewise, CENTCOM reported that the Shiite rebels had fired a ballistic missile hours earlier at the Marlin Luanda oil tanker, flying the Marshall Islands flag, while it was sailing in the Gulf of Aden – near the Red Sea – and that damage was reported but no wounded.
The Houthis had previously claimed responsibility for this attack and stressed that they will continue their military operations to impose a blockade on Israeli shipping in the Red and Arabian Seas until a ceasefire is achieved in Gaza and the siege imposed on the Palestinian enclave is lifted.
The Houthis, backed by Iran, claim that since November 19 they have launched more than 200 drones and 50 missiles against Western commercial vessels and warships in the Red Sea with the aim of economically harming Israel and in support of the Palestinians of the Gaza Strip.
The tension in the area has caused the main shipping companies worldwide to continue adjusting their routes to avoid transiting through this sea route, through which 8% of the world’s grain trade, 12% of the oil trade and 8% of the international trade in liquefied natural gas.
The US approves the sale of forty F-16 aircraft to Türkiye
On the other hand, the US State Department notified Congress that it approved the sale of 40 F-16 fighter-bombers and different related equipment for $23 billion to Turkey, after Ankara committed this week to allow entry. of Sweden in NATO.
“The sale will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by improving the air capabilities of a NATO ally and (…) will not alter the basic military balance in the region,” they stated from the State Department in the statement announcing the viability of the transaction.
By Nadeem Faisal Baiga
