Houthis Attack British Oil Tanker Amid Ongoing Red Sea Disruptions

US and UK forces retaliate with joint strikes as the US leads a coalition to protect maritime trade, despite Pentagon's denial of troops in Yemen.

Yemen's Houthi rebels claim responsibility for a missile attack on a British oil tanker, the Marlin Luanda, in the Gulf of Aden, causing the vessel to catch fire.
US and British forces have launched multiple rounds of joint strikes aimed at reducing the Houthis' ability to target vessels transiting the key Red Sea maritime trade route.
The Houthis have been targeting Red Sea shipping since November, declaring US and British interests as legitimate targets, disrupting trade and causing several shipping firms to divert from the Red Sea.
The US is leading a coalition to protect Red Sea shipping, likened to a 'highway patrol' for the waterway, and has also redesigned the Houthis as a terrorist organization.
Despite the Pentagon's recent denial of US troops in Yemen, the White House reported in December that a small number of US military personnel are deployed in Yemen.