American and British warships on Tuesday shot down a new barrage of drones and missiles fired from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen toward commercial ships steaming through the southern Red Sea.

F/A-18 fighter jets from the aircraft carrier Dwight D. Eisenhower and four other warships intercepted “a complex attack” of 18 drones, two anti-ship cruise missiles and one anti-ship ballistic missile, the US military’s Central Command said in a statement. No injuries or damage were reported, the command said.

The US and a dozen allies issued an ultimatum to the Iran-backed Houthis last week to cease their near-daily attacks that have disrupted shipping in the crucial sea lanes that connect the Indian Ocean with the Suez Canal. The Houthis have promised to attack ships until Israel stops the war in the Gaza Strip, where it has been fighting for more than three months.

So far, the US has held back from retaliating against Houthi bases in Yemen, in large part because it does not want to undermine a fragile truce in Yemen’s civil war.

The rising tension in the Red Sea has fueled concerns of a wider conflict in the region with militias and groups tied to Iran.

The Houthi attacks have forced the world’s largest shipping companies to reroute vessels away from the Red Sea, creating delays and extra costs felt around the world through higher prices for oil and other imported goods. The Biden administration said last week and again on Tuesday that it would hold the Houthis responsible for the attacks, a warning that suggested the government may be considering retaliatory strikes, military officials said.

Last week’s statement was also signed by Britain, Australia, New Zealand, Bahrain, Belgium, Canada, Germany, Denmark, Italy, Japan, Singapore and the Netherlands. American officials have said they expect some of those countries to join the US if retaliatory strikes are conducted.

Earlier this month, the US Navy sank three Houthi boats, killing all the crew members, when they fired on American helicopters coming to aid a Maersk cargo ship.

Pentagon officials have drawn up detailed plans for striking missile and drone bases in Yemen and some of the facilities where fast boats of the kind used to attack the Maersk container ship appear to be tied up.

President Joe Biden has said he wants to avoid direct military strikes against the Houthis, which many officials fear could escalate conflict in the Middle East after Hamas’ deadly attacks against Israel on October 7.

New York Times News Service