US destroyer shoots down bomb-carrying drones launched from Houthi territory in Yemen

BOSTON, MA - NOVEMBER 26: The USS Thomas Hudner, named after Concord's Medal of Honor recipient Thomas Hudner, arrives in Boston for its commissioning ceremony later in the week on Nov. 26, 2018. (Photo by David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

A U.S. destroyer stationed in the Red Sea has shot down bomb-carrying drones launched by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, the military said. 

The military arm of Yemen’s Houthi rebels said earlier Wednesday that it launched a batch of long-range large missiles toward southern Israel, including the Red Sea city of Eilat. The Iran-backed rebel group has launched at least six aerial attacks against Israel since the conflict broke out on Oct. 7.

The Houthis, who oppose Israel, previously shot down an American MQ-9 Reaper drone during the Israel-Hamas war with a surface-to-air missile, and have fired drones and missiles toward Israel.

U.S. Central Command said the USS Thomas Hudner, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, shot down the drones early Thursday morning.

“The ship and crew sustained no damage or injury,” Central Command said, but did not identify what it believed the drones were targeting.

The Israeli-Hamas violence now expanding into the Red Sea, which stretches from Egypt's Suez Canal down to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait separating East Africa from the Arabian Peninsula, increases concerns of a wider conflict.