US official says Houthis sent explosive drone boat towards Red Sea shipping lanes

Shafaq News/ The Houthis launched an unmanned boat packed with explosives from Yemen towards international shipping lanes in the Red Sea but it exploded before striking any vessels, a US Navy official said on Thursday.

The "one-way attack" boat was headed for shipping lanes "clearly with the intent to do harm", Vice Admiral Brad Cooper told reporters.

He described the explosive boat as a "new capability" for the Houthis. It came within a "couple a of miles of ships", including merchant vessels and US Navy ships.

"We all watched as it exploded" on Thursday morning, Vice Admiral Cooper said.

He said there have been 25 Houthi attacks since November 18 in international shipping lanes in the Red Sea.

The Pentagon last month formed Operation Prosperity Guardian, a new international mission focused on countering attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea.