Houthis fighters pick up debris from 'US drone' after rebels 'hit British cargo ship with missile' forcing crew to jump ship
NEW photos reportedly show the debris of a US drone after it was shot down by Houthi rebels in the Red Sea.
The Iranian-backed group has done so claimed responsibility for four rocket attacksincluding on a British freighter and two American ships, in 24 hours.
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Yemen's Houthis shot down the US drone MQ9 in the port city of Hodeidah, according to military spokesman Yahya Sarea.
The group also claimed to have destroyed the British freighter Rubymar off the coast of Yemen, causing its crew to rush to “abandon ship”.
Sarea issued a statement on Monday claiming the Houthis were responsible for the attack.
He said the ship was hit by “appropriate missiles” and was at risk of sinking.
The spokesperson said: “The naval forces of the Yemeni Armed Forces carried out a specific military operation, attacking the British ship RUBYMAR with a number of appropriate naval missiles.
“As a result of the extensive damage the ship has suffered, it is now at risk of sinking.”
UK Maritime Trade Operations previously confirmed it had received a report of an “incident” 35 nautical miles south of Al Mukha in Yemen.
On Sunday evening, military authorities were said to have arrived on the scene to provide assistance and that all crew members were safe.
The attack came just a day after US forces launched five strikes on Houthi targets in response to the group's repeated attacks on shipping lanes in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
As of February 16, Houthis are considered a “specially designated global terrorist group” by the US.
The rebels began their attacks on international commercial shipping groups in the Red Sea in mid-November, reportedly in solidarity with the Palestinians amid the ongoing Gaza war.
Several shipping companies have been forced to divert their ships transiting the Suez Canal and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait to a longer alternative route around the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa.
Such changes have led to major delays and have had consequences for companies, among others Suzuki, Tesla, BP, Shell, Qatar Energy,DHL, FedExAdidas, Marks & Spencer, Next one, Primark, Sainsbury'sAnd Goal.
And the price of global shipping containers rose more than 300 percent between November and January.
The US Department of Defense announced in December that a multinational trade and ship protection operation would be launched in the Red Sea in response to escalated Houthi attacks.
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