US destroyer shoots down 14 Huthi drones

Since the beginning of the war between Israel and the radical Islamic group Hamas, the Houthi militia in Yemen has regularly fired drones and missiles at Israel. Merchant ships are also targeted by the terrorists. The US destroyer "USS Carney" is able to prevent a new attack.

A US warship in the Red Sea intercepted 14 drones fired from Yemen. The disposable attack drones were shot down by the destroyer "USS Carney", explains the US military command for the Middle East (Centcom) on X. There were no reports of damage to ships or casualties, it added. The drones were fired from areas in Yemen controlled by the Houthi militias. The partners in the region had been "warned of the threat".

Since the beginning of the war between Israel and the radical Islamic Hamas, the Iranian-affiliated Houthi militia in Yemen has regularly attacked Israel and ships in the Red Sea with drones and missiles. The world's largest container shipping company, MSC, announced that it would no longer sail through the strait between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The Swiss-based shipping company announced that it had decided to take this step because the Houthis had stepped up their attacks.

On Friday, the rebels in Yemen said they had attacked the MSC "Palatium III" with a drone in the Strait of Bab al-Mandab at the southern end of the Red Sea in response to the war in Gaza. There was fire damage and the ship had to be repaired, MSC explained. There were no casualties. The shipping company wants to divert some ships around the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa. This will extend the sailing times of these ships by a few days.

On Friday, the German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd and the Danish shipping company Maersk had already announced their intention to suspend their voyages through the Red Sea for the time being. The French shipping company CMA CGM also followed suit. "The situation continues to deteriorate and concerns about safety are growing," the French company said in a statement. The development also means higher insurance premiums against war risks for shipowners. This leads to additional costs of several tens of thousands of US dollars for a seven-day passage in the Red Sea.