US Navy faces most intense combat against Yemen since WWII: AP
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Speaking from aboard the USS Laboon, one of the guided-missile destroyers taking part in the campaign, AP reporter Jon Gambrell confirmed that Yemenis are launching near-daily attacks.
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The Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Laboon sails in the Red Sea on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. (AP)
The US' naval campaign against Yemen has turned into the most intense combat the Navy has faced since World War II, according to US officials and experts speaking to the Associated Press, whose reporters recently visited US ships stationed off Yemen.
Speaking from aboard the USS Laboon, one of the guided-missile destroyers taking part in the campaign, AP reporter Jon Gambrell confirmed that Yemenis are launching near-daily attacks.
Gambrell noted that the American destroyer has been present here for a month, accompanying US ships and others through the Red Sea, Bab el-Mandeb, and the Gulf of Aden.
The Americans "have seen the Yemenis launch ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and drones," Gambrell said, claiming, "this typically bustling Red Sea corridor is devoid of commercial ships, and traffic has dropped dramatically through the Suez Canal, which has taken a lot of revenue from Egypt."
This comes as a report from the US Defense Intelligence Agency revealed that the number of maritime operations carried out by the Yemeni Armed Forces since November 19, 2023, until now, in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, amounts to no less than 175 attacks.
The report indicated that Yemeni operations have prompted 29 major energy and shipping companies to change their shipping routes to avoid being targeted. As a result, container shipping in the Red Sea has plummeted by 90% since December 2023.
In response to the disruption in traditional shipping routes, alternative shipping routes around Africa have been utilized. However, these routes add an additional 11,000 nautical miles to the journey, resulting in 1-2 weeks of extended transit time and an increase of one million dollars in fuel costs per trip.
Read more: Yemen uncovers large Israeli-US spy network
Yemen, among the most impoverished and food-insecure countries in the world due to years of sanctions and Western-backed aggression, has been actively engaged in blockading the Israeli economy by preventing ships from reaching the occupied territories. The purpose of doing so is to pressure the Israeli regime to halt its genocidal campaign against the people of Gaza.
Following Yemeni actions, allies of "Israel", namely the US and the UK, formed a naval coalition to counter Yemeni operations and reopen sea routes to the occupied territories. UN experts have previously acknowledged that acts of genocide are being committed in Gaza.
The ICC has filed applications for warrants of arrest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Security Minister Yoav Gallant.
Last month, the Yemeni Armed Forces announced the "fourth phase of escalation" targeting Israeli and Israeli-linked ships in international waters. The range of operations has now come to include ships transiting the Mediterranean Sea.
Earlier this month, the YAF fired seven cruise missiles and four attack drones at the USS Eisenhower.
Read more: US-UK aggression on Yemen targets Hodeidah
On January 17, the US announced it officially designated the Ansar Allah Movement as a global terrorist group, citing attacks on naval vessels as a driver of the decision.
In response to the decision, the head of the movement's Negotiating Envoy and top official, Mohammad Abdul-Salam said that the classification "is ironically amusing, coming from the global state of terrorism."
The committee said that its decision is "an honorary badge," highlighting the group's "supportive stance toward the Palestinian people."
