A chemical tanker transiting the Indian Ocean was struck by an Iranian attack drone on Saturday.
Saturday’s attack on the motor vessel CHEM PLUTO, a Liberian flagged, Japanese-owned, and Netherlands-operated chemical tanker, was the first time one of the recent ballistic missile and drone attacks originated from Iran, not Yemen as the other ones have, a United States defense official told the Washington Examiner.
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Since the war between Israel and Hamas broke out, the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have carried out more than a dozen attacks or attempted hijackings of commercial ships transiting the Red Sea, which is a highly trafficked waterway for the vessels.
Saturday's attack took place approximately 200 nautical miles off the coast of India, which is also a deviation from the ongoing Houthi attacks.
The U.S. accused Tehran on Friday of “enabling” the Houthis attacks by providing them with the critical intelligence required for them, which has spurred major shipping companies to change itineraries to avoid the now dangerous waterway, even if it means extending the travel time.
"We know that Iran was deeply involved in planning the operations against commercial vessels in the Red Sea. This is consistent with Iran's long-term materiel support and encouragement of the Houthis' destabilizing actions in the region," National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson told the Washington Examiner. "Iranian support to these Houthi operations remains critical. We know the intelligence picture which the Houthis use to operate in the maritime space is reliant on Iranian-provided monitoring systems."
"Moreover, Iranian-provided tactical intelligence has been critical in enabling Houthi targeting of maritime vessels since the group commenced attacks in November," Watson added.
U.S. Central Command announced that the Houthis themselves had carried out a series of attacks on Saturday. The group fired two anti-ship ballistic missiles into international shipping lanes in the Southern Red Sea, though no ships reported being impacted by those fires. The USS LABOON, which was patrolling in that same area, shot down four drones that originated from Houthi-controlled Yemeni territory, which CENTCOM said were “inbound” to the ship. Additionally, the M/V BLAAMANEN reported a near miss of a one-way attack drone, while the M/V SAIBABA was hit by a one-way attack drone, though no injuries were reported.
CENTCOM said these two attacks on commercial vessels represent the 14th and 15th attacks since the war in the Middle East broke out.
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The U.S. military has not conducted any strikes against the Houthis since these attacks ramped up, though American naval vessels in the region have responded to distress calls from attacked vessels and have shot down drones headed in their direction. The Pentagon is also leading Operation Prosperity Guardian, a new coalition of more than 20 countries that have signed up to essentially act as "highway patrol" for commercial vessels that still decide to transit the Red Sea.
Pentagon spokesman Major General Patrick Ryder recently described the initiative as a “defensive coalition” and compared their role to “Highway Patrol” designed to “safeguard maritime vessels.”