USA establishes “Maritime Task Force”

The US Department of Defense (Pentagon) announced that they are negotiating to establish an international “Maritime Task Force” against the attacks of Houthi forces in Yemen against commercial ships in the Red Sea.

Pentagon Spokesperson Brigadier General Patrick Ryder evaluated the developments in the Middle East at the daily press conference.

Ryder stated that the USA is in talks with its partners and allies about establishing a Maritime Task Force against the Houthis’ attacks in the Red Sea, and said, “It is important to underline that the Houthis’ attacks on commercial ships in international waters are an international problem.” said.

Stating that a framework has been created for the task force in question and details will be announced later, Ryder stated that this will be a coalition consisting of 38 willing countries and that a certain level of participation from any member country will not be foreseen.

“We are certainly considering action here with our partners and allies in the region,” Ryder said. he said.

The Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen announced the previous day that they targeted two Israeli ships named “Unity Explorer” and “Number Nine” in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, and stated that one of the ships was hit by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and the other by a sea missile.

In the statement made on the US Central Command (CENTCOM) X social media platform, it was stated that 4 attacks were carried out on 3 commercial ships in international waters in the south of the Red Sea.

In the statement, it was stated that the US Navy destroyer “USS Carney” in the south of the Red Sea responded to the call for help from commercial ships, and that the destroyer shot down 3 UAVs that were advancing towards it while helping the ships.

The leader of the Houthis, Abd al-Malik al-Houthi, had threatened in his speech on television on November 14 that they could target Israeli ships in the Red Sea with missiles and UAVs.