A U.S. warship shot down two missiles fired at a U.S.-flagged container ship in the Red Sea on Wednesday, and a third missile fell into the sea without causing any damage to the ship, according to a U.S. defense official. The missile attack reportedly originated from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.
The USS Gravely, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, was responsible for destroying the missiles. Reports indicate the third missile missed the ship by about 200 kilometers.
Wednesday’s attack was the first on a U.S. ship in the Red Sea since January 18 and the third in recent weeks. It was the 36th attack on a merchant ship in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden area since November 19, Fox News reported.
The Ain Al-Asad airbase in Western Iraq was struck in a missile attack on Saturday, causing four U.S. servicemembers to suffer traumatic brain injuries. U.S. forces responded to those attacks on Wednesday, killing at least two people and destroying facilities believed to be used by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and Syria, Aljazeera reported.
“U.S. military forces conducted necessary and proportionate strikes on three facilities used by the Iranian-backed Kataib Hezbollah militia group and other Iran-affiliated groups in Iraq,” U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said.
Houthi militias have said that the group will continue to target U.S. shipping and military facilities until Israel ends its retaliatory campaign against Hamas in Palestine. The Hamas-run Health Ministry claims that 25,000 people have been killed since Israel launched a campaign to eradicate terrorists from Palestine.
Iraqi officials claim the U.S. attacks against terrorists should cease regardless of the attacks against facilities used by U.S. personnel.
“This unacceptable act undermines years of cooperation, blatantly violates Iraq’s sovereignty, and leads to an irresponsible escalation at a time when the region faces the danger of expanding conflict over the immoral war of extermination that the Palestinian people are facing,” Major General Yahya Rasool said, according to the Iraqi News Agency.
The attacks against merchant vessels in the Red Sea in recent months have escalated the conflict and caused shipping prices to spike. Some shipping companies are avoiding the area over fears of being targeted by militias.
