Illustrative image. (The U.S. Central Command)
The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) said on February 17 that the Houthis (Ansar Allah) fired four anti-ship ballistic missiles from Yemen into the Red Sea a day earlier.
At least three of the missiles were launched towards Pollux, a Panamanian-flagged, Denmark-owned, Panamanian-registered vessel, the command said in a statement, adding that there were no reported injuries or damage from the vessel or any other ship in the area.
The Houthis had claimed responsibility for the attack on the Pollux, alleging that the vessel was affiliated with the United Kingdom.
While CENTCOM said that Pollux was not damaged, both the UK Maritime Trade Operations, a detachment of the Royal Navy, and British maritime security firm Ambrey, confirmed that the tanker was hit on February 16.
In the same statement, the command announced that its forces carried two “self-defense” strikes against one mobile anti-ship cruise missile and one mobile unmanned surface vessel (USV) Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen.
“CENTCOM identified the mobile missile and USV in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen and determined it presented an imminent threat to U.S. Navy ships and merchant vessels in the region,” the statement reads.
Yemen’s Al-Masirah TV, which is run by the Houthis, said that “American-British” strikes hit the areas of al-Kuwayzi, al-Jah, al-Jabbana, al-Zahra and al-Jarbani in the western province of al-Hudaydah on February 16. The news channel reported another strike on the area of Ras Issa, also in al-Hudaydah, on February 17.
The Houthis, who are backed by Iran, have targeted dozens of Israel-affiliated vessels and others owned by the U.S. and the UK in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November 19 in response to the ongoing Israeli war and siege on the Gaza Strip.
The U.S. and the UK retaliated by carrying out dozens of strikes on Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen. However, the group remains undeterred.
