Greek Frigate Destroys Houthi Drone Off the Coast of Yemen

Greek frigate Hydra opened fire on two Houthi unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the Gulf of Aden, off Yemen during the early hours of Thursday, downing one while the second changed course.

According to information, the air radar of the Greek frigate detected at 5.15 a.m. eight unmanned aerial vehicles. Two of them started moving towards a commercial ship of European interests, to which Hydra provides protection.

The Greek frigate opened fire when the two UAVs approached within 5 nautical miles.

This is the second engagement of the Hellenic Navy’s MEKO 200 frigate since joining the EU naval mission Aspides, designed to safeguard merchant ships from assaults by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militia.

The Hydra frigate sailed from the Salamis Naval Station on February 26, and on March 3, 2024, it was deployed in the Red Sea area and joined the European Union Operation “Aspides”, which translates to “shields” in Greek, mandated to protect shipping in the Red Sea.

The EU mission is run from a military base in Larissa in central Greece under the command of Greek navy Cdre. Vasilios Griparis.

Yemen’s Houthi rebels fire missile

On Wednesday a warship — part of a US-led coalition protecting shipping in the Mideast — intercepted an anti-ship ballistic missile fired over the Gulf of Aden, the American military said, marking a new attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels after a recent lull.

The Houthis claimed the assault, which comes after a period of relatively few rebel attacks on shipping in the region over Israel’s ongoing war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The explosion happened some 130 kilometers (80 miles) southeast of Djibouti in the Gulf of Aden, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said in a statement.

Early Thursday, the US military’s Central Command said a coalition warship shot down the missile likely targeting the MV Yorktown, a US-flagged, owned and operated vessel with 18 US and four Greek crew members.

“There were no injuries or damage reported by US, coalition or commercial ships,” Central Command said.

Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, a Houthi military spokesman, claimed the attack but insisted without evidence that the missile hit the Yorktown. Saree also claimed the Houthis targeted another ship in the Indian Ocean, without providing proof. The Houthis have made repeated claims that turned out to not be true during their yearslong war in Yemen.

The Houthis have launched more than 50 attacks on shipping, seized one vessel and sank another since November, according to the US Maritime Administration.

Houthi attacks have dropped in recent weeks as the rebels have been targeted by a US-led airstrike campaign in Yemen and shipping through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden has declined because of the threat.

American officials have speculated that the rebels may be running out of weapons as a result of the US-led campaign against them and firing off drones and missiles steadily in the last months.

The Houthis have said they would continue their attacks until Israel ends its war in Gaza, which has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians there. The war began after Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and taking some 250 others hostage.