US attacks Houthi drone "ground control station" in Hodeidah, Yemen

In the early hours of this Thursday, the United States Army carried out a "self-defense" attack against a drone "ground control station" of the Yemeni Houthi rebels in an operation in which they also shot down a dozen of this type of objects. , when the insurgency has reported an attack near the city of Hodeida, in Yemen.

The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) has indicated that the attack took place around 1:30 a.m. (local time), when US forces "identified the control station and unmanned aerial attack vehicles in controlled areas of Yemen." by the Houthis and determined that they posed an imminent threat to US Navy and merchant vessels in the region.

"This action will protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer" within the framework of operations aimed at reducing the insurgents' ability to attack ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, CENTCOM has concluded. through a statement published on its website.

Hours earlier, the Security Spokesperson of the Houthi Ministry of the Interior had denounced a "British-American aggression" that "targeted the Al Jabana area, in the city of Hodeida, in the west of the country.

The vice president of the Houthi Media Authority, Naser al Din Amer, has assured that Washington and London "will pay" for their attacks. Likewise, he has reaffirmed the intention of the Yemeni insurgency to continue attacking ships related to Israel, the United States and the United Kingdom in the Red Sea as a show of support for the Palestinians.

During the last few hours, US troops have carried out several operations in the area, shooting down a ballistic missile and three Iranian drones launched by the Yemeni insurgency towards the Gulf of Aden, and shooting down a surface-to-air missile "that was prepared to be launched" and that it "posed an imminent threat to US aircraft.

The rebels, backed by Iran and who have controlled the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, and other areas in the north and west of the country since 2015, have launched several attacks against ships with some type of connection to Israel in the wake of the military offensive against the Strip. Gaza, which began after the attacks carried out on October 7 by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas).

Although they have assured that they guarantee the free navigation of the rest of the ships, the situation has led various companies - including four of the five main companies dedicated to maritime transport in the world - to suspend their operations through this maritime route, key for the international trade, or to divert their ships through much longer routes that involve going around the African continent through the Cape of Good Hope.