Royal Navy warship HMS Diamond shoots down Houthi assault drone within the Red Sea
A Royal Navy destroyer has shot down a drone assault from Houthi rebels within the Red Sea, in response to the Ministry of Defence.
HMS Diamond was compelled to defend itself with Sea Viper missiles on Saturday after the most recent assault from Iran-backed militants in Yemen. The warship has been deployed to the Middle East amid escalating tensions with the Houthis, who declare to be focusing on cargo ships headed for Israel in response to the battle in Gaza.
Defence Secretary Grant Shapps mentioned the UK stays “undaunted” after the most recent strike, which solely weeks after HMS Diamond and US warships launched a coordinated blitz in opposition to a barrage of drones.
The Ministry of Defence mentioned in a press release: “Yesterday HMS Diamond successfully repelled a drone attack from the Iranian-backed Houthis in the Red Sea. Deploying her Sea Viper missile system, Diamond destroyed a drone targeting her, with no injuries or damaged sustained to Diamond or her crew.
“These insupportable and unlawful assaults are utterly unacceptable and it’s our obligation to guard the liberty of navigation within the Red Sea. We wish to thank the courageous crew of HMS Diamond for his or her service to defend British and worldwide pursuits.”
The Defence Secretary tweeted: “The UK stays undaunted after yesterday’s unlawful assault on HMS Diamond by the Iranian-backed Houthis. Our dedication to guard harmless lives and the liberty of navigation is totally unwavering.”
It comes after a British-linked oil tanker was hit by a Houthi missile on Friday, with fireplace raging for a number of hours. The insurgent fighters mentioned that they had focused the Marlin Luanda in response to “American-British aggression”.
The operator of the tanker is registered as Oceonix Services Ltd, a UK registered company, but it flies under the flag of the Marshall Islands and is operated on behalf of multinational trading company Trafigura.
Trafigura said in a statement on Saturday that the crew were safe and that the fire had been put out. The ship was making its way towards a safe harbour.
The UK Government warned that Britain and its allies “reserve the best to reply appropriately” after “utterly unacceptable” assaults on service provider vessels.
