Yemen’s Houthi rebels claim to have a new, hypersonic missile in their arsenal, Russia’s state media reported on Thursday, potentially raising the stakes in their attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and surrounding waterways against the backdrop of Israel’s war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
The report by the state-run RIA Novosti news agency cited an unidentified official, but provided no evidence for the claim. It comes as Moscow maintains an aggressively counter-Western foreign policy amid its grinding war on Ukraine.
However, the Houthis have for weeks hinted about “surprises” they plan for the battles at sea to counter the US and its allies, which have so far been able to down any missile or bomb-carrying drone that comes near their warships in Middle East waters.
Photo: AP
On Thursday, Abdul Malik al-Houthi, the Houthis’ secretive supreme leader, said the rebels would start hitting ships heading toward the Cape of Good Hope in Africa’s southern tip. Until now, the rebels have largely struck ships heading into the Red Sea toward the Suez Canal, and such an escalation would target the longer, alternative route used by some vessels. It remains unclear how they would carry any possible assault out.
Meanwhile, Iran and the US reportedly held indirect talks in Oman, the first in months amid their long-simmering tensions over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program and attacks by its proxies.
Iran, the Houthis’ main benefactor, claims to have a hypersonic missile and has widely armed the rebels with the missiles they now use.
“The group’s missile forces have successfully tested a missile that is capable of reaching speeds of up to Mach 8 and runs on solid fuel,” a military official close to the Houthis said, according to the RIA report.
The Houthis “intend to begin manufacturing it for use during attacks in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, as well as against targets in Israel,” the official said.
Mach 8 is eight times the speed of sound. Hypersonic weapons, which fly at speeds higher than Mach 5, could pose crucial challenges to missile defense systems because of their speed and maneuverability.
Ballistic missiles fly on a trajectory in which anti-missile systems like the US-made Patriot can anticipate their path and intercept them. The more irregular the missile’s flight path, such as a hypersonic missile with the ability to change directions, the more difficult it becomes to intercept.
China is believed to be pursuing the weapons, as is the US. Russia claims it has already used them.
In Yemen, al-Houthi boasted that his fighters “continue to expand the effectiveness and scope of our operations to areas and locations the enemy never expects.”
He said they would prevent ships “connected to the Israeli enemy even crossing the Indian Ocean ... heading toward the Cape of Good Hope.”
The Houthis have attacked ships since November, saying they want to force Israel to end its offensive in Gaza, launched in response to Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel. However, the ships targeted by the Houthis have increasingly had little or no connection to Israel, the US or other nations involved in the war. The rebels have also fired missiles toward Israel, though they have largely fallen short or been intercepted.
The UK Navy yesterday said that a commercial ship was hit by a missile in the southern Red Sea in another suspected attack by Houthi militants.
The vessel said it “sustained some damage,” UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), a part of the navy that provides maritime security information, said on X. “The crew are reported safe and the vessel is proceeding to its next port of call.”
The assault happened at about 4am yesterday and 76 nautical miles (141km) off the Houthi-
controlled port of Hodeidah.
UKMTO did not name the vessel or give more information about it.
It was the second incident in the span of hours. Earlier, UKMTO said another ship reported two rockets flying over it.
Additional reporting by Bloomberg
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