Yemen’s Houthis Shoot Down Another US MQ-9 Reaper Drone

The Houthis said Monday that their forces shot down another US MQ-9 Reaper drone while it was operating over Yemen.

“The air defenses of the Yemeni Armed Forces shot down an American MQ-9 aircraft while it was carrying out hostile missions in the airspace of Saada Governorate,” said Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea.

Sarea said the downing marked the 11th US MQ-9 drone that the Houthis have shot down over Yemen since last year. US officials confirmed to CNN that the drone was shot down.

The Pentagon has previously said the number of MQ-9s the Houthis say they downed is not accurate, but the US has refused to say how many it has lost. MQ-9 Reaper drones are worth about $30 million and can be armed with powerful Hellfire missiles.

The Houthis downed the drone after Israel launched airstrikes against the Yemeni port of Hodeidah, damaging infrastructure and killing about five people. Israel said the strikes were a response to the Houthis firing ballistic missiles at Tel Aviv.

“The Israeli enemy, with American support, launched 17 airstrikes on various civilian facilities in Hodeidah, including the port and the power station, which led to the martyrdom of five citizens and the injury of 57 as a final tally,” Sarea said on Monday.

He added that the Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, would escalate their attacks on Israel. “The crime of aggression against Hodeidah will be met with a military escalation against this criminal enemy in the coming period,” he said.

The US has been bombing the Houthis since January, a bombing campaign that has failed to stop Houthi attacks on shipping, which began in response to the Israeli onslaught in Gaza. The Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, have been clear they would stop the attacks if there were a ceasefire in Gaza.