The US Secretary of Defence, Lloyd Austin, announced a new US-led operation focusing on the \u201csecurity challenges in the southern Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden\u201d following recent attacks by Houthi forces on commercial marine traffic in the region, CNN reported on Monday. \u201cI am announcing the establishment of Operation Prosperity Guardian, an important new multinational security initiative under the umbrella of the Combined Maritime Forces and the leadership of its Task Force 153, which focuses on security in the Red Sea,\u201d Austin said in a statement.<\/p>\n
The statement comes during the Austin visit to Israel, where he held meetings with senior Israeli officials to discuss the Israel-Hamas war, said countries \u201cmust come together to tackle the challenge posed by this non-state actor launching ballistic missiles and un-crewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) at merchant vessels from many nations lawfully transiting international waters.\u201d The multinational operation includes the United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles and Spain, CNN reported.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe recent escalation in reckless Houthi attacks originating from Yemen threatens the free flow of commerce, endangers innocent mariners, and violates international law,\u201d Austin said. \u201cThe Red Sea is a critical waterway that has been essential to freedom of navigation and a major commercial corridor that facilitates international trade.\u201d The announcement came after the USS Carney responded Monday to a distress call from a commercial vessel after it was attacked by \u201cmultiple projectiles\u201d in the southern Red Sea, a US military official said.<\/p>\n
The ship, the Swan Atlantic, \u201cwas attacked by a one-way attack drone and an anti-ship ballistic missile launched from a Houthi-controlled area in Yemen,\u201d according to US Central Command. It reported that a chemical\/oil tanker, a Cayman Islands-flagged ship, asked for assistance after the attack and USS Carney, the closed US warship responded to assess damage, CENTCOM said on Monday night. About the same time as the attack on the Swan Atlantic, a second commercial ship in the Red Sea was targeted by Houthi militants, CENTCOM said.<\/p>\n
The Houthis claimed responsibility for the attacks on both vessels, which they claimed were linked to Israel. The Houthis also said that \u201cno harm will be dealt\u201d to ships heading to ports around the world, \u201cexcept for Israeli ports.\u201d Houthi forces in Yemen have been targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea, claiming the attacks as revenge against Israel. Oil giant BP announced Monday that it would pause all shipments through the Red Sea due to the \u201cdeteriorating security situation,\u201d marking the latest shipping firm pausing routes through the channel.<\/p>\n
On Saturday, the USS Carney shot down 14 drones launched from \u201cHouthi-controlled areas\u201d of Yemen, according to US Central Command. The unmanned aircraft systems \u201cwere assessed to be one-way attack drones and were shot down with no damage to ships in the area or reported injuries,\u201d CENTCOM posted on X on Saturday. Last month, the USS Thomas Hudner shot down multiple one-way attack drones launched from Yemen. And in another instance, two ballistic missiles were fired from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen toward the USS Mason in the Gulf of Aden after it responded to a distress call from another commercial tanker that had come under attack by five armed individuals believed to be Somali, CNN reported.<\/p>\n
The US has responded to attacks in recent months by launching strikes in eastern Syria and Iraq, targeting weapons depots and storage facilities used by Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its proxy militia groups.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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