The U.S. Navy destroyer USS Carney has shot down an Iranian-made Houthi drone launched from Yemen, a military official confirms to Fox News.
There was no damage to the Carney or any injuries to the U.S. personnel onboard. The warship had been sailing near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the time of the attack.
The USS Carney shot down 15 drones and four cruise missiles fired from Yemen in the northern Red Sea last month during a nine-hour span, using its SM-2 surface-to-air missiles. Unlike Wednesday’s drone — an Iranian-made KAS-04 — it did not shoot down the missiles in self-defense, as the projectiles were headed toward Eilat in Israel.
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Wednesday’s attempted drone strike is the latest in a string of threats from Iranian-backed Houthi rebels. It comes a day after an Iranian drone flew within 1,500 yards of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier as it was conducting flight operations in international waters in the Arabian Gulf.
Navy Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, said the drone "violated safety precautions" by not staying more than 10 nautical miles from the ship. The drone ignored multiple warnings but eventually turned away.
Earlier this month, another Navy destroyer, the USS Thomas Hudner, shot down a drone that was heading toward the ship as it sailed in the southern Red Sea. It also was near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, and it shot down the drone over the water.
The Red Sea, stretching from Egypt's Suez Canal to the narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait separating the Arabian Peninsula from Africa, is a key trade route for global shipping and energy supplies.
The U.S. Navy has stationed multiple ships in the sea since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7, which has heightened tensions in the region.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
