Pentagon

US Navy destroyer in Red Sea shoots down cruise missiles potentially headed toward Israel: Pentagon

The missiles were fired by Iranian-backed Houthi militia in Yemen, the DOD said

Biden delivers remarks on the conflicts in Israel and UkrainePresident Joe Biden stated he would be introducing a defense bill to Congress worth roughly $100 billion. Business Wire/AP, FILE

The USS Carney, a U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer in the northern Red Sea, on Thursday shot down multiple missiles and drones launched by Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen that the Pentagon said were potentially headed toward targets in Israel.

It is the first time in recent memory that a U.S. Navy ship in the Middle East has engaged missiles and drones that were not directly aimed at the vessel.

It's also the first U.S. military action taken to defend Israel in the current crisis and with the U.S. and other countries trying to contain the conflict between Israel and Hamas, the possibility that an Iranian-backed proxy group fired missiles and drones at Israel is sure to increase growing regional tensions. The ship intercepted three land-attack cruise missiles and several unmanned aircraft in the northern Red Sea on Thursday night local time, a Pentagon brigade spokesman said. Gen. Pat Ryder said at a press conference. U.S. officials told ABC News that Carney Air Force planes shot down eight drones fired by the Houthis.

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The preliminary U.S. assessment was that the USS Carney was not the target of any of the Houthi missiles or drones, according to multiple U.S. officials.

"We cannot say for certain what these missiles and drones were targeting but they were launched from Yemen heading north along the Red Sea potentially to targets in Israel," said Ryder who added that information about the engagements was still being processed.

It’s unclear from where the Houthi militia's missiles were fired but they were headed in a northerly direction, an official said.

The Pentagon on Thursday said the USS Carney shot down missiles fired from Yemen and potentially headed toward Israel. ABC News / US Department of Defence 

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The Houthis are an Iranian-backed Shiite movement that has seized control over much of northern Yemen and has been at war with recent years while Yemen has been at war with a Saudi-led coalition since 2015. As part of the conflict, the Houthis have launched missiles and drones deep into Saudi Arabia, but the missiles intercepted Thursday did not appear to be aimed at targets inside Saudi Arabia.

Last week, Houthi leader Abdelmalek al-Houthi said that if the United States intervened directly in the Gaza conflict, his group would respond by launching drones and missiles and pursue other military options. reportedly said.

"There are red lines that should not be crossed when it comes to Gaza," he says.

Yemen's Houthis held a military parade in Sanaa, Yemen, on September 21, 2023, to commemorate the 9th anniversary of their capture of the capital. Mohammed Hammoud/Getty Images

Thursday's incident occurred in the early evening hours (local time), when missiles and drones were detected moving north over the Red Sea.

A US official told ABC News that the missile fired by the Houthis was an SM2 missile mounted on the aircraft carrier USS Carney. No information has been released about which weapons platform aboard Kearney shot down the eight drones.

Brigadier Gene. Ryder told reporters that the interception took place over water, not land. No one on board was injured, U.S. officials said.

The United States has increased its military presence in the region since the Israeli-Hamas war began about two weeks ago.

USS Carney is part of the carrier strike group USS Gerald R. Ford, which is deployed to the eastern Mediterranean to prevent Iran and Hezbollah from joining the war between Israel and Hamas. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin recently authorized an expanded deployment of Task Force Ford to remain in the eastern Mediterranean and ordered additional fighter jets to be stationed at U.S. Air Force bases in the region.

To increase U.S. deterrence against escalating conflict in the eastern Mediterranean, Ford will soon join the carrier strike group USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, which departed Norfolk, Virginia, on Saturday and will remain in the region for the next 7 to 10 days. It is expected to be. The day may come.

“By deploying these U.S. Navy formations and state-of-the-art combat aircraft to the region, we are able to prevent large-scale conflict, strengthen regional stability, and, of course, protect and defend our national security interests. We aim to send a strong message that aims to be clear,'' Ryder told reporters on Thursday.

Men chant slogans while holding Kalashkov assault rifles during a tribal council in Yemen's Houthi-held capital Sanaa in September. 21, 2019. Mohammed Huwais/AFP via Getty Images

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The USS Carney had just entered the Red Sea through the Suez Canal on Wednesday, so her destroyer was still in the northern part of the waters that border Egypt, Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, Sudan, Saudi Arabia and Yemen.

A missile fired from the aircraft carrier Carney would strengthen deterrence in the region and demonstrate that a show of force is serious business, a senior US official told ABC News.

Risks to U.S. forces and U.S. interests in the region are increasing, especially after a deadly explosion at a hospital in the Gaza Strip earlier this week heightened tensions in the region.