Houthis Claim US Warship Attack; US Official Denies Allegation

Yemen’s Houthi rebels have claimed responsibility for an attack on a U.S. Navy mobile base at sea, specifically targeting the USS Lewis B. Puller. The Puller functions as a floating landing platform and had been previously deployed in the Arabian Sea. This deployment was part of U.S. efforts to mitigate Houthi attacks on commercial vessels navigating through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, a Houthi military spokesperson, announced that they launched a missile at the Puller in the Gulf of Aden. However, he did not provide any evidence to support this claim.

Saree’s statement mentioned that these attacks will persist until what he described as “aggression” ceases and the siege on the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip is lifted.

Contradicting this claim, a U.S. defense official, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of intelligence matters, reported that there were no attacks on the Puller. The official noted that previous Houthi missile launches have failed to hit their targets, falling on land or in the sea instead.

The USS Lewis B. Puller has been instrumental in U.S. military operations, including serving as a base for Navy SEALs. On January 11, the SEALs conducted a mission from the Puller to intercept Iranian-made ballistic and cruise missile components believed to be en route to Yemen. Tragically, two SEALs went missing during this operation and are presumed dead.

The Houthis have a history of targeting vessels in the Red Sea, especially since the escalation of Israel’s offensive against Hamas in Gaza. These attacks often endanger ships that have little or no direct connection to Israel, posing a significant risk to a vital international trade route that connects Asia, the Middle East, and Europe.

Most recently, a commercial vessel was struck by a missile from the Houthis on Friday, causing a fire that raged for several hours.