Yemen’s Houthi group says it downed US MQ-9 drone above Sanaa

​​​​​​​By Raşa Evrensel and Rania Abu Shamala

ISTANBUL (AA) - The Houthi group announced Saturday that it shot down a second US MQ-9 drone within 24 hours in the skies above the Yemeni capital of Sanaa.

Yahya Sare’e, the group’s spokesperson, said that “air defenses shot down an American MQ-9 drone with a locally made surface-to-air missile while it was conducting hostile activities over Sanaa.”

Sare’e said it was the second drone that the group’s air defenses succeeded in downing within 24 hours, and the sixth in April.

He added that it brought the number of US drones downed by Houthi air defenses to 21 since Oct. 7, 2023.

The spokesman stressed that the group "will continue their support operations until the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip is halted and the blockade is lifted."

He also warned that "continued American airstrikes and targeting of civilians will only strengthen their resolve and steadfastness in supporting the Palestinian people."

Sare’e said that "targeting civilians, their properties, and public and private facilities will not break the will of the Yemeni people."

There has been no statement issued by the US.

The downing comes after US airstrikes late Thursday targeted the Ras Isa port in the western Al Hudaydah province, reportedly killing 80 victims and injuring 150 others, including port workers and first responders, according to a preliminary toll released by the Health Ministry of the Houthi-run government.

US President Donald Trump ordered in mid-March "decisive and powerful military action" against the Houthi group and later threatened to "completely annihilate them."

The Houthis have targeted ships passing through the Red and Arabian seas, the Bab al-Mandab Strait, and the Gulf of Aden since November 2023 in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where more than 51,000 victims have been killed in a brutal Israeli assault for more than 18 months.​​​​​​​

The group halted attacks when a ceasefire in Gaza was declared in January between Israel and the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, but resumed the assaults after Israel renewed airstrikes on the enclave last month.