The Iran-backed Houthis aren’t backing down - at least not yet. Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saree said the Iranian-backed terror group targeted US warships and Israel on Wednesday, adding that some of the attacks involved drones.“The Yemeni Armed Forces [Houthis] have carried out new drone operations, targeting a US warship in the Red Sea and an Israeli military site in Tel Aviv,” Iranian state media said.Saree said “an operation was carried out against the Israeli military in the occupied region of Jaffa using a drone, which successfully achieved its objective,” the Iranian report said. He said the strike was “in support of the oppressed Palestinian people and their dear mujahideen [jihadists], and in response to the ongoing war of genocide against our brothers in Gaza.”
The group said it launched drones targeting the American aircraft carrier USS Harry Truman. “Yemen will never surrender to American aggression and will continue its operation against Israel until the regime ends its war and lifts the siege on Gaza, he reiterated,” the report added.The strikes come as the US continues to bolster its military power in the region. The US has the Truman, in addition to six B-2 bombers stationed at Diego Garcia island in the Indian Ocean. The US and Iran are set to hold indirect talks in Oman on Saturday.
US Central Command also showed images of warplanes being armed aboard the carrier. The former commander of the Truman was replaced in February, and Hill took command. He was commanding the USS Eisenhower at the time.
US aircraft carriers in Indian Ocean territory
Meanwhile, satellite images caught the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier entering the Indian Ocean via the Malacca Strait, Newsweek reported on Monday.“The USS Carl Vinson, originally deployed in the western Pacific, has now moved into the Indian Ocean on its way to join the USS Harry S. Truman in the Middle East. This increased US naval presence comes amid escalating tensions with Iran and its support for Houthi rebels,” Newsweek noted.Those images were from around April 5, meaning this second carrier could be nearing the Gulf of Oman by Saturday, depending on its speed, bearing, and route.The US State Department re-designated the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization on March 5.On Wednesday, it warned countries and businesses alike against giving material support to the terror group: “The United States will not tolerate any country or commercial entity providing support to foreign terrorist organizations, such as the Houthis, including offloading ships and provisioning oil at Houthi-controlled ports. Such actions risk violating US law.”