According to the U.S army’s Central Command (CENTCOM), a U.S aircraft and a coalition warship have shot down six Houthi unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in the Red Sea.

“UAVs were identified by U.S. Central Command as likely targeting U.S. and coalition warships and were an imminent threat,” CENTCOM noted in a post on X.

CENTCOM separately disclosed that one person had been injured after two Houthi missiles hit a British-owned cargo ship in the Red Sea and added that the US also shot down six Houthi drones in the Red Sea identified as imminent threats to US and allied warships.

Meanwhile, the French navy shot down two drones over the Red Sea, the defence ministry said.

The strikes come amid heightened tensions in the region, where Houthi fighters have carried out attacks on commercial and military shipping since November, in solidarity with the Palestinian people in Gaza.

The Houthi attacks have disrupted international commerce along a route that accounts for about 15 percent of the world’s shipping traffic.

Several shipping companies have redirected their vessels around the southern tip of Africa, delaying delivery times and adding a further 3,000-3,500 nautical miles (5,500-6,500km) to their route.

Neither ongoing air strikes by the United States and United Kingdom on Houthi positions inside Yemen nor a US-led maritime coalition to protect commercial shipping appear to have boosted trade traffic through the Suez Canal.

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) reported that weekly container ship traffic through the Suez Canal has dropped by 67 percent from peak levels.

The Yemen-based group says the attacks are a means of exerting pressure to end the war in Gaza.

Overall traffic through the Suez, a source of important revenue for Egypt, has fallen by 42 percent.

UNCTAD added that the disruptions have also impacted countries such as Djibouti, Kenya and Tanzania, which benefit from the transportation of goods through the canal.

Houthis “Ban” Israeli, US, British Ships From Red Sea

Moreover, Yemen’s Houthis announced that ships that are wholly or partially owned by Israeli individuals or entities and Israel-flagged vessels are “banned” from the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea.

The Houthi’s Humanitarian Operations Coordination Center, an agency controlled by the group, sent a statement to shipping insurers and firms operating in the region.

Ships owned by US or British individuals or entities, or sailing under their flags, are also banned.

Also on Thursday, Houthi leader, Abdulmalik al-Houthi announced the introduction of “submarine weapons” to be used in their attacks.

“Operations in the Red and Arabian Seas, Bab al-Mandab Strait, and the Gulf of Aden are continuing, escalating, and effective,” Abdulmalik al-Houthi added in a televised speech.

More to come…