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Two US Navy pilots were shot down over the Red Sea in an apparent “friendly fire” incident, the US military said on Sunday. Both pilots were recovered alive and one suffered minor injuries in the incident.
The incident occurred while the US military was carrying out airstrikes against Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebelsalthough the US military’s Central Command did not give further details about what its mission was at the time.
“The guided missile cruiser USS Gettysburg, part of the USS Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group, mistakenly fired and hit the F/A-18, which was flying in front of the USS Harry S. Truman,” the Command said. Central in a statement.
It was not immediately clear how the Gettysburg could mistake an F/A-18 for an enemy aircraft or missile, particularly because ships in a battle group remain connected by both radar and radio communication.
Earlier Saturday, CENTCOM reported that it had conducted precision airstrikes in Houthi-held territory in Sanaa, Yemen, targeting a missile storage facility and a command and control facility.
The strikes were carried out in response to the current Houthi attacks against U.S. Navy warships and commercial vessels in the southern Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, CENTCOM said.
During the operation, CENTCOM forces also shot down several Houthi attack drones as well as an anti-ship cruise missile over the Red Sea.
Early Saturday morning, a rocket fired from Yemen hit an area of Tel Aviv, injuring at least 16 people. The Houthis issued a statement on Telegram saying they had aimed a hypersonic ballistic missile at a military target, which they did not identify.
Since Truman’s arrival, the United States has intensified its air strikes against the Houthis and its missile fire into and around the Red Sea. However, the presence of a group of American warships may provoke new attacks by the rebels, such as what the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower saw earlier this year. That deployment marked what the Navy described as its most intense combat since World War II.
Houthi-controlled media reported US attacks both in Sanaa and around the port city of Hodeida on Saturday, without offering any information on casualties or damage. In Sana’a, the attacks appeared to be particularly targeted at a mountainside known to host military installations. The Houthis did not acknowledge the downing of the plane in the Red Sea.
The Houthis have pointed about 100 merchant ships with missiles and drones in solidarity with the Hamas militant group since the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip began in October 2023.
The Houthis seized a ship and sank two in a campaign that has also killed four sailors. Other missiles and drones have been intercepted by separate coalitions led by the United States and Europe in the Red Sea, or failed to hit their targets, which also included Western military vessels.
The rebels say they attack ships linked to Israel, the United States or the United Kingdom to force an end to Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the conflict, including some bound for Iran.
The Houthis have also increasingly attacked Israel itself with drones and missiles, leading to retaliatory Israeli airstrikes.
