French military frigate and fighters destroyed four drones flying towards them as part of the European Union’s Aspides mission to ensure the security of commercial and military ships in the Red Sea. This was reported on the website of the French Ministry of Defense.
“The French frigate and fighters destroyed the drones as part of legitimate self-defense,” the statement clarifies.
According to the French military department, these actions helped protect the cargo ship True Confidence, which had previously been attacked and was under tow, as well as other trading vessels transiting through this region.
After the escalation of the conflict between the Palestinian movement Hamas and Israel, the Yemeni rebel movement Ansar Allah, also known as the Houthis, announced that it would strike Israeli territories and prevent ships associated with that country from passing through the waters of the Red Sea and the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait until the military operation in the Gaza sector is completed.
On February 2, the EU’s chief diplomat, Josep Borrell, stated that the naval mission of EU member states to protect ships in the southern Red Sea from Houthi attacks would be defensive.
Earlier, the United States sent an aircraft carrier strike group to the Gulf of Aden due to Houthi attacks.
