A British warship shot down an attack drone in the Red Sea, the Ministry of Defense of the country reports. It was the first time in decades that the Royal Navy had used the weapon against an aerial target.
According to Defense Secretary Grant Shepps, the drone was believed to have intended to attack a merchant ship, but the British Type 45 destroyer HMS Diamond successfully destroyed the target.
Schepps did not specify who was behind the attack, but noted that Yemen's Houthi rebels have traditionally distinguished themselves with similar attacks in the Red Sea. They regularly claim responsibility for such incidents and threaten to attack all ships bound for Israel, regardless of their flag.
According to the Ministry of Defense of Great Britain, the last time the Royal Navy shot down an aerial target was during the First Persian Gulf War in 1991.
HMS Diamond was deployed to the region just two weeks ago to support international maritime security efforts. This decision was taken after the commercial ship Unity Explorer, which was under the flag of the Bahamas and owned by a British company, became the object of an attack by the Houthis, who receive support from Iran.
Earlier, the Houthis, siding with Iran, seized several ships associated with Israel in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandeb strait, through which a large part of the world's oil flow is transported.
