A U.S. destroyer shot down four drones flying toward it in the southern Red Sea that were launched from areas controlled by the Shiite Houthi rebels in Yemen on Saturday, the joint command of U.S. forces in the region said. Middle East (CENTCOM, “central command”).

The Houthis also fired two ballistic missiles at merchant ships, which missed their targets, and sent drones to hit two tankers, hitting one without casualties. These were “the 14th and 15th attacks against merchant ships” launched by the Houthis “since October 17,” CENTCOM said via X (formerly Twitter).

The Houthis, who are close to Iran and control most of northern Yemen, are causing a serious problem in international shipping by launching attacks on merchant ships passing through the Bab al-Madeb strait in the Red Sea.

The Shiite rebels say they are launching these attacks against merchant ships that they say are “connected” to Israel or heading to Israeli ports in order to press for an end to the Israeli military’s operation to “eliminate” Hamas in the Strip. of Gaza since October 7.

CENTCOM’s naval component responded to calls for assistance from two merchant ships that had been attacked. The Norwegian chemical tanker Blaamanen reported a Houthi drone narrowly missed. The Indian-flagged Gabon-owned tanker Saibaba was hit by a one-way drone, with no crew members injured.

While the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Laboon (DDG 58) shot down 4 drones between 15:00 and 20:00 (Sanaa time), with no injuries or damage reported.

On Monday, the US announced Operation Prosperity Guardian, which aims to increase the international military presence in the Red Sea to protect international shipping from Houthi attacks. According to the US Department of Defense, 20 countries have agreed to join the coalition that was formed.