Houthis fire barrage of drones, missiles at ships, including US destroyer 

The US military said Yemen’s Houthi militia has fired a new wave of drones and missiles into international shipping lanes off Yemen, including two missiles aimed at a US warship in the Red Sea. (X/@CENTCOM)
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Updated 02 June 2024
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Houthis fire barrage of drones, missiles at ships, including US destroyer 

  • Comes as Houthis claim to have made another reprisal hit on US ship in Red Sea

AL-MUKALLA: The US military said Yemen’s Houthi militia has fired a new wave of drones and missiles into international shipping lanes off Yemen, including two missiles aimed at a US warship in the Red Sea.

This comes as the Houthis claim to have made another reprisal hit on a US ship in the Red Sea.

The US Central Command said on Sunday that the Houthis launched three drones over the Red Sea on Saturday, one of which was destroyed by its forces, while the other two fell into the water, failing to strike any ship in the important commercial corridor.

The US military said in a statement on Sunday morning, Yemen time, that no injuries or damage was reported by the US coalition or commercial ships.

Also on Saturday, CENTCOM forces intercepted two anti-ship ballistic missiles in the southern Red Sea before they reached their target, the destroyer USS Gravely.

“The ASBM were fired in the direction of USS Gravely and were destroyed in self-defense, with no damage or injuries reported by US, coalition, or commercial ships,” the US military said in the same statement.  

On Friday, the Houthis launched five drones and two ballistic missiles into the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, but did not hit any ships on the two commercial routes, CENTCOM said.

In Sanaa, the Houthis claimed on Saturday night to have carried out six strikes on commercial and navy ships, including one on the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, in the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean.

In a videotaped statement, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said that their troops launched several ballistic missiles and drones at the US aircraft carrier and a US destroyer in the Red Sea.

The other four attacks targeted three ships: Maina in the Red Sea, the Al-Oraiq in the Indian Ocean, and the Abliani in the Red Sea, alleging that they had breached a ban on visiting Israeli ports.

Ship-tracking app Marine Traffic identified the Maina as a bulk carrier flying the Malta flag that left Russia’s Baltic Sea port of Ust-Luga early last month for Krishnapatnam Port in India.

The Marshall Island-flagged Al-Oraiq is an LNG tanker sailing from Ras Laffan in Qatar to Italy, while the Malta-flagged Abliani is a crude oil tanker sailing to the Suez Canal in Egypt, according to the app.

Since November, the Houthis have sunk one commercial ship, captured another, and claimed to have shot hundreds of ballistic missiles and drones at more than 100 ships in the Red Sea, Bab Al-Mandab Strait, Gulf of Aden, Indian Ocean, and most recently the Mediterranean. 

The Houthis claim that their actions are aimed solely at ships with links to Israel in an atempt to put pressure on Israel to end its war in Gaza, a claim challenged by the Houthis’ opponents in Yemen, who accuse the militia of exploiting the nationwide outrage of civilian deaths in Gaza to shore up their public support at home.

The US reacted to the Houthi assaults by labeling them as a terrorist organization, organizing a marine alliance to protect the seas, and launching airstrikes on Houthi sites in Yemen.

Despite US assertions that its strikes have weakened the Houthis, analysts say the increasing number of Houthi attacks on ships demonstrate that the strikes are ineffectual and that the Houthis continue to feel that their attacks have increased their popularity.

“It (the surge in Houthi attacks] suggests that US-UK airstrikes against Houthi targets are not working, at least not yet and not as effectively as intended,” Elisabeth Kendall, a Middle East expert and head of Girton College at the University of Cambridge, told Arab News. “It suggests that the Houthis believe their attacks continue to work for them in terms of gaining broad popularity, international notoriety and greater leverage in ongoing efforts to end the Yemen war. They see no reason to stop,” she added.

Kendall said that maintaining strikes on ships, even with less accurate weaponry, is a win for the Houthis.

“The Houthis are resilient and the asymmetric nature of the Red Sea conflict plays to their advantage. The sophistication of their weaponry may diminish, but all they need to do is to keep going.”


Pope Leo appeals for Gaza ceasefire, laments deaths of children

Updated 5 sec ago
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Pope Leo appeals for Gaza ceasefire, laments deaths of children

VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo appealed on Wednesday for a ceasefire in Gaza, and called on Israel and Hamas militants to “completely respect” international humanitarian law.
“In the Gaza Strip, the intense cries are reaching Heaven more and more from mothers and fathers who hold tightly to the bodies of their dead children,” the pontiff said during his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square.
“To those responsible, I renew my appeal: stop the fighting,” said the pope. “Liberate all the hostages. Completely respect humanitarian law.”
Leo, elected on May 8 to replace the late Pope Francis, also appealed for an end to the war in Ukraine.

Italy demands Israel stops strikes, blasts expulsions of Gazans

Updated 25 min 39 sec ago
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Italy demands Israel stops strikes, blasts expulsions of Gazans

  • Antonion Tajani: ‘The bombings must stop, humanitarian assistance must resume as soon as possible, respect for international humanitarian law must be restored’

ROME: Italy’s foreign minister on Wednesday again urged Israel to stop its strikes on Gaza, while warning that expelling Palestinians from the territory “is not and never will be an acceptable option.”
“The legitimate reaction of the Israeli government to a terrible and senseless terrorist act has unfortunately taken on absolutely tragic and unacceptable forms, that we ask Israel to stop immediately,” Antonion Tajani told parliament, referring also to Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel.
“The bombings must stop, humanitarian assistance must resume as soon as possible, respect for international humanitarian law must be restored,” he said.
“Hamas must immediately free all the hostages which are still today in its in hands, and who have the right to return to their homes.”
Tajani also condemned US President Donald Trump’s plan for US control of Gaza and the forced displacement of the Palestinians living there.
“I want to reiterate today in this chamber with the utmost clarity – the expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza is not and will never be an acceptable option,” Tajani said.
“This is why we wholeheartedly support the Arab plan led by Egypt for the recovery and reconstruction of the (Gaza) Strip, which is incompatible with any hypothesis of forced displacement.”


Israel strikes Yemen’s Sanaa airport for 2nd time in a month

Updated 49 min 33 sec ago
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Israel strikes Yemen’s Sanaa airport for 2nd time in a month

  • Israel last struck the airport in Sanaa on May 6

DEIR AL-BALAH: The Israeli military said Wednesday it struck Yemen’s Sanaa airport for the second time in a month targeting the Houthis.

The strike came after the Houthis have fired several missiles at Israel in recent days without causing casualties or damage.

There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage in Sanaa.

Israel last struck the airport in Sanaa on May 6, destroying the airport’s terminal and leaving its runway riddled with craters. Some flights to Sanaa resumed on May 17.


At least 47 wounded, mostly by gunfire, as Palestinians crowd aid hub in Gaza

Updated 28 May 2025
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At least 47 wounded, mostly by gunfire, as Palestinians crowd aid hub in Gaza

  • The UN and other humanitarian organizations have rejected the new system, saying it won’t be able to meet the needs of Gaza’s 2.3 million people

GENEVA: A UN official says 47 Palestinians were wounded, mostly by gunfire, when crowd overran Gaza aid hub.

Ajith Sunghay, head of the UN Human Rights Office for the Palestinian territories, told reporters in Geneva that it appeared Israeli army fire had caused most of the injuries.

On Tuesday, crowds of Palestinians overwhelmed a new aid distribution hub set up by an Israeli and US-backed foundation. The crowd broke through fences and an Associated Press journalist heard Israeli tank and gun fire, and saw a military helicopter firing flares.

The distribution hub outside Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah was opened the day before by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which has been slated by Israel to take over aid operations.

The UN and other humanitarian organizations have rejected the new system, saying it won’t be able to meet the needs of Gaza’s 2.3 million people and allows Israel to use food as a weapon to control the population. They have also warned of the risk of friction between Israeli troops and people seeking supplies.

Palestinians have become desperate for food after nearly three months of Israeli blockade pushed Gaza to the brink of famine.


Gaza rescuers say 16 killed in Israeli strikes Wednesday

Updated 28 May 2025
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Gaza rescuers say 16 killed in Israeli strikes Wednesday

  • Israel has stepped up its offensive in Gaza this month, aiming for ‘the defeat of Hamas’
  • At least 3,822 people had been killed in the territory since Israel ended a ceasefire on March 18

GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories: Gaza rescuers said sixteen people were killed Wednesday in Israeli strikes across the besieged Palestinian territory where Israel intensified its operations this month.

“Sixteen people have been killed as a result of Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip since dawn,” civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal said.

Among them, nine belonged to the family of photojournalist Osama Al-Arbeed and were killed in a strike on their home in Gaza’s north at 2:00 a.m., Bassal said.

He added that Arbeed was injured, noting that he is a videographer and editor at a local film production organization.

Another six members of the same family were killed in central Gaza in a strike that left 15 people wounded, “including children.”

One other person, a civilian per Bassal, was killed near the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis.

When contacted by AFP, the Israeli military declined to comment on the strikes, saying it could not do so without precise coordinates.

Israel has stepped up its offensive in Gaza this month, aiming for “the defeat of Hamas,” more than 18 months after the group’s October 2023 attack on Israel triggered the war.

Some 1,218 people were killed in that attack, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

Militants also took 251 hostages, 57 of whom remain in Gaza, including 34 who the Israeli military says are dead.

The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Monday that at least 3,822 people had been killed in the territory since Israel ended a ceasefire on March 18, taking the war’s overall toll to 53,977, mostly civilians.