US Navy pilots shot down by ‘friendly fire’ during attack on the Houthis

Two US Navy pilots were shot down over the Red Sea in an apparent “friendly fire” incident during US airstrikes against Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis, according to the US military.

Both pilots survived the incident, but one suffered minor injuries.

The US military had carried out airstrikes targeting the Houthi rebels on Sunday, local time, although the military’s Central Command did not elaborate on the details of the mission.

Central Command said in a statement that the guided-missile cruiser USS Gettysburg, part of the USS Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group, “mistakenly fired at and hit the F/A-18 which was flying off the USS Harry S. Truman”.

The Red Sea corridor has become dangerous over the past year due to ongoing attacks on shipping by the Houthis despite US and European military coalitions patrolling the area.

The rebel group has targeted about 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones since the Israel-Hamas war began in October 2023, following Hamas terror attacks on Israel that killed 1,200 people and took 250 others hostage, according to Israeli figures.

One vessel was seized and two others were sunk by the Houthis during that time in a campaign that has also killed four sailors.

The rebels maintain that they are targeting ships with links to Israel, the US or the UK to force an end to Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza.

The airstrikes in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, targeted a missile storage facility and a command-and-control facility run by the Houthis, the US military said earlier.

The attack came after Houthi militants fired a ballistic missile at Tel Aviv, wounding at least 14 people on Saturday, local time.

In an earlier statement, the US military’s Central Command said the strikes were aimed at “disrupting and degrading Houthi operations”.

It also said it hit several Houthi one-way drones and an anti-ship cruise missile over the Red Sea.

“CENTCOM forces conducted the deliberate strikes to disrupt and degrade Houthi operations, such as strikes against US Navy warships and merchant vessels in the southern Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb and the Gulf of Aden,” the statement read.

The operation involved US Air Force and US Navy assets, including F/A-18 Hornet fighter jets.

Saturday’s strike followed a similar attack last week by US aircraft on a command and control facility run by the Houthis, who control large parts of Yemen.

Houthi militants attack Tel Aviv

Loading…

Yemen’s Houthi militants claimed responsibility for launching a missile attack on Tel Aviv that injured at least 14 people on Saturday, local time.

In a statement, the rebel group said its initial attack on Israel had “targeted a military target of the Israeli enemy in the occupied territory of” Tel Aviv using a ballistic missile.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had earlier said it failed to intercept the attack, and Israel’s Ambulance Service said its paramedics were treating patients with minor shrapnel injuries, some of whom were taken to hospital.

“Following the sirens that sounded a short time ago in central Israel, a projectile sent from Yemen was identified and unsuccessful interception attempts were made,” the IDF said on its Telegram channel.

Houthi rebels have repeatedly fired drones and missiles at Israel since the Gaza conflict began, in what the group describes as an act of solidarity with the Palestinians.

On Thursday, Israel launched strikes against ports and energy infrastructure in Houthi-held parts of Yemen and threatened more strikes against the group, which has launched hundreds of missiles at Israel over the past year.

The Iran-backed group in Yemen has been attacking commercial shipping in the Red Sea for more than a year to try to enforce a naval blockade against Israel.

The Houthis have said they are acting in solidarity with the Palestinians in Israel’s year-long war in Gaza.

Wires