A Houthi missile attack targeting a US destroyer was so close to the warship that it triggered the Deep Close Weapon System, known as the last line of defense, American officials said.
The terrorist group’s Tuesday night attack on the USS Gravely came within a mile of the ship sailing in the Red Sea, the closest the Houthis have come to an attack on a US warship, four US officials told CNN.
The missiles are getting so close, in fact, that the USS Gravely, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, is forced to rely on its Close-In Weapons System (CIWS) for the first time since the Houthis began an attack on the military. and cargo ships in November, the official added.
Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are equipped with systems as the last line of defense against rocket fire, with automatic machine guns capable of close-range interception and destruction of incoming missiles.
A Houthi missile strike came within a mile of the USS Gravely on Tuesday night, the closest attack on a Navy warship in the Red Sea. US Navy The attack triggered the Gravely Proximity Weapon System, the ship’s last line of defense against incoming missiles. Moises Sandoval/US Navy
There were no injuries or damage to the ship as a result of the attack, according to US Central Command.
While many Houthi attacks have missed their targets or failed to reach US warships, the latest attack on the USS Gravely shows just how precise the terrorist group’s attacks can be.
Although the Houthis claim that they will target ships linked to Israel in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden as a sign of support for Hamas, the Iran-backed rebel group has repeatedly fired on US and British ships.
After the attack on the USS Gravely, the Houthis celebrated the strike as “a victory for the oppression of the Palestinian people and a response to the American-British aggression against our country.”
Although many Houthi attacks miss their targets or fail to reach them, the terrorist group continues to launch attacks almost daily. Getty Images
The attack prompted the US and the European Union to increase their defense capabilities, with the US removing several Houthi drones and ground control stations in Yemen on Thursday, Central Command said.
The terrorist base and its assets were destroyed after being labeled an “immediate threat” to merchant ships and Navy ships operating in the region, officials said.
It was the second American strike in Yemen in two days after the US also intercepted a Houthi surface-to-air missile that was poised to be launched and posed a “definite threat to US aircraft operating in the region,” according to Central Command.
A Houthi missile hit a British tanker carrying flammable chemicals on Saturday. via REUTERS
Wednesday also saw the European Union commit to launching a full naval mission in the Red Sea over the next three weeks to protect cargo ships from terrorist groups.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell insisted that the naval fleet would only be involved in protecting cargo ships passing through the Red Sea and would not be involved in direct combat with the Houthis.
Terrorist leaders, however, have welcomed the idea of war against the US and its allies, describing such a conflict as “honourable” and something all Yemenis would be prepared for.
“We are ready for a long-term confrontation with the forces of tyranny,” Houthi commander Muhammad al-Attifi said in a statement earlier this week.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
