Threatening to Attack US Ships, Houthi Group Spokesperson: United States is on the Verge of Losing Maritime Security

The missile launch from the United States warship targeted the Houthi group in Yemen. (Twitter/@CENTCOM)

JAKARTA - A senior official from the Houthi militant group said on Monday that they would expand their attack targets to include United States ships.

"The ship doesn't have to be headed to Israel for us to target it; it's enough if the ship is American," Nasruldeen Amer, a spokesman for the Houthi Group, told Al Jazeera, quoted by Reuters, January 16.

"The United States is on the verge of losing its maritime security," he warned.

Amer also said that British and American ships had become "legitimate targets" due to the joint military attack launched by the two countries against Yemen last week.

Previously, US President Joe Biden on Friday last week called the Houthi forces in Yemen a "terrorist" group, after American and British warplanes, warships and submarines launched dozens of air strikes against Yemen.

In response to the attack, the Houthi militia group threatened to provide a "strong and effective response".

Yesterday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said the Iran-allied Houthi militia would continue their attacks in the Red Sea "as long as the genocide in the Gaza war continues".

"Senior officials in Sanaa (Houthi leader) Yemen told us, as long as the genocide in the Gaza war continues, they will take action to prevent the movement of Israeli ships or vessels towards Tel Aviv," he said.

However, Foreign Minister Amirabdollahian added that the Houthis had assured Tehran that "they will not compromise maritime security".

It is known that attacks on ships since October by the Houthi group, who say they are acting in solidarity with Palestine, have hit trade and alarmed major powers in a regional escalation of Israel's war with Hamas militants in Gaza that has lasted more than three months.

In the latest attack, an American bulk carrier was reportedly hit by a missile near the Port of Aden in Yemen, causing a fire in the hold but no injuries on board, according to British Maritime Security firm Ambrey.