Pink Sea, rigidity between the US and the Houthis rises. A sailor injured, then retaliation –

Two cruise missiles launched by Yemen’s Houthi rebels within the Gulf of Aden hit a cargo ship, critically wounding a sailor who was evacuated by American forces. This was revealed by the USA Central Command (Centcom), which specified that M/V Verbena flying the Palauan flag, owned by Ukraine and operated by Poles, “suffered injury and consequent hearth on board”. “One sailor was critically injured in the course of the assault” and “a USS Philippine Sea plane evacuated him to a close-by associate ship for medical remedy.” Centcom denounced “this continued reckless habits by the Iran-backed Houthis” which “threatens regional stability and endangers the lives of sailors within the Pink Sea and the Gulf of Aden.” The professional-Iranian Yemeni rebels have claimed duty for assaults towards three ships in the previous couple of hours, together with the Verbena, “in retaliation for the crimes dedicated towards our folks within the Gaza Strip and in response to the American-British aggression towards our nation”.

In response, US forces destroyed two Houthi unmanned vessels (USVs) within the Pink Sea, together with a drone and 7 radars positioned in an space managed by pro-Iranian rebels in Yemen. The affected radars allowed “the Houthis to focus on maritime vessels and endanger business transport.”