US shoots down 12 Houthi attack drones

The United States said on December 26 that it had shot down 12 attack drones and five missiles launched by the Iran-backed Houthis, as the Israeli military said a fighter jet successfully shot down a “hostile aerial target” — believed to be a drone launched at Israel from Yemen — over the Red Sea.

In a statement, US CENTCOM said the USS Laboon, a guided-missile destroyer, and F-18 fighter jets from the Eisenhower carrier strike group were involved in the effort to down 12 one-way attack drones, three anti-ship ballistic missiles, and two land attack cruise missiles in the southern Red Sea that were fired by the Houthis over a 10-hour period, The Times of Israel reports.

There was no damage to ships in the area or injuries reported, the US Central Command said.

The Laboon is in the southern Red Sea as part of a US-led coalition meant to protect shipping lanes from attack by the Houthis in the key Bab el-Mandeb strait.