Houthis Announce 6 Operations in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean

A spokesperson for the Iranian-backed Houthi militants claimed on Saturday, June 1, that the group has conducted six operations in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean. Yahya Saree, the spokesperson, stated that the group's forces attacked the USS Eisenhower aircraft carrier in the northern Red Sea with drones and missiles for the second time in the past 24 hours. He also claimed that Houthi militants targeted an American destroyer in the Red Sea with several drones. Saree further mentioned that the group targeted the ships 'Mina' and 'Al-Waric' in the Indian Ocean and the ship 'Ablyani' in the Red Sea. The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) has not yet responded to these claims. Meanwhile, CENTCOM announced on Friday that U.S. forces destroyed one Houthi drone over the Gulf of Aden and three drones over the Red Sea. CENTCOM also stated that Houthi militants fired two anti-ship ballistic missiles towards the Gulf of Aden, but these attacks caused no damage or casualties. The Iranian-backed Houthis, who control the capital of Yemen and most of the country's populated areas, have recently begun attacking ships linked to Israel in the Red Sea, claiming to support the Palestinian people against Israeli attacks. The scope of these attacks has since expanded to other vessels as well. The Houthi attacks on international shipping routes in the Red Sea have disrupted global transportation through the Suez Canal, forcing shipping companies to choose longer and more expensive routes around the Cape of Good Hope in southern Africa. A court in Yemen, controlled by the Houthis, sentenced 44 individuals to death on charges of 'espionage.' On Saturday, June 1, the Associated Press reported, citing Yemeni lawyer Abdul Majid Sabra, that the Houthi-affiliated court accused and tried 49 individuals for 'collaborating with the enemy,' with the trial of 16 of them conducted in absentia. 'Collaboration with the enemy' is a charge used by the Iranian-aligned Houthis against Yemenis who supported the previous Saudi-led military coalition in the Yemeni civil war, and Houthi courts issue heavy sentences, including death penalties, for this charge. One of the 44 sentenced to death is a businessman linked to humanitarian aid activities. Adnan Harazi, the CEO of a company in Sana'a that designed a system for registering and verifying the distribution of humanitarian aid in Yemen, was arrested over a year ago and has also been sentenced to asset confiscation. The Yemeni lawyer described the trial process as lacking justice, stating that judges did not allow the defense team access to trial documents at the beginning of the trial. He also mentioned that the Houthis physically and psychologically tortured the defendants, and the detainees spent nine months in solitary confinement. The Houthi group ruling Sana'a has not responded to this report. Investigations by the Associated Press indicate that thousands have been imprisoned by the Houthis during the Yemeni civil war. The investigations also reveal that some detainees in Houthi prisons have been burned with acid, hung by one hand, and tortured with batons. This rebel group has controlled major cities like Sana'a and several strategic ports since the beginning of the war.