An American official announced, on Friday, that the US Army’s MQ-9 Reaper drone had crashed off the coast of Yemen, after it was shot down by the Houthi group, bringing the total number of targeted drones of this type to 3, with the cost of manufacturing each one reaching about 30 million dollars. According to the Congressional Research Service.

According to what was reported by CBS News, the Houthis shot down two more MQ-9 aircraft, both off the coast of Yemen, the first in early November, and the second in February.

The drones flying off and over the coast of Yemen are part of the US military's efforts to help defend commercial and military ships against ongoing attacks by the Houthis.

The pace of attacks has slowed in recent weeks, but attacks are still ongoing, including on Friday, when the Houthis launched three anti-ship ballistic missiles in the Gulf of Aden.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement: “On April 26 at 5:49 pm Sana’a time (2:49 pm GMT), the Iranian-backed Houthis launched 3 anti-ship ballistic missiles from the areas under control.” For their control in Yemen towards the Red Sea near the two ships (MV Maisha), which flies the Barbados flag and is managed by Liberia, and the British (MV Andromeda), which flies the Panama flag and is managed by the Seychelles.”

The statement added: “The MV Andromeda reported minor damage, but continues to sail. No injuries or other damage have been reported by US, coalition, or commercial vessels at this time.”

The Pentagon's Deputy Press Secretary, Sabrina Singh, said earlier this month that the United States "will certainly continue to do everything in its power to protect commercial shipping through the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, and of course, do whatever we need." To protect our ships

More than 100 ships

Since the outbreak of Israel's war on Gaza, the Houthis in Yemen have attacked, or threatened, more than 100 commercial or military ships in the Red Sea or the Gulf of Aden, as part of their expression of "protest against the Gaza war and Washington's support for Israel," but American officials point out He pointed out that many of the ships targeted by the group “have no connection to Israel.”

As a countermeasure, the United States and Britain, with support from other countries, carried out four rounds of joint air strikes to destroy Houthi capabilities in Yemen.

In addition, the US military regularly launches strikes against Houthi missiles and drones, and the United States has launched a defensive naval operation, dubbed “Operation Prosperity Sentinel,” with more than 20 partner nations, to defend commercial shipping from Houthi attacks.

So far, only one Houthi attack has resulted in casualties, as an attack last March on the Liberian-owned merchant ship “True Confidence” led to the death of two of its crew.