Iranian-backed Houthis rebels have claimed responsibility for a U.S. MQ-9 Reaper drone crash off the coast of Yemen on Thursday, Fox News confirmed on Friday. Thursday's crash is the fourth remotely piloted drone brought down by Iranian-proxy groups since November, costing the U.S. government upwards of 120 million. It is also the third time Houthi rebels have brought down a U.S. MQ-9 drone. Remotely piloted MQ-9 Reaper drones cost around 30 million each. Last fall, the Houthis released video of a reaper drone the rebels shot down on Nov. 8, one day after Hamas' unprovoked attack on Israel.

U.S. Central Command said Sunday that Houthis launched an anti-ballistic missile toward a tanker ship that carries oil and chemicals in the Gulf of Aiden on Saturday, though it struck the water and did not cause damage to the ship or injuries to those on board. In a post on X, U.S. Central Command said the Iranian-backed Houthis were likely targeting the M/V Torm Thor, which is flagged and owned by a U.S. company. The ship was sailing in the Gulf of Aden at the time of the incident, which was reportedly at 11:45 p.m. local time. Central Command said a third UAV was also heading toward the area and crashed from what appeared to be an in-flight failure. A protestor holds a model of a Houthi missile during a protest held against the U.S.-led airstrikes and sanctions against the Houthi group in Sanaa, Yemen, Feb. 16, 2024.

The United States military has warned of an "environmental disaster" after an attack by Yemen's Houthi rebels on a cargo ship caused an oil slick in the Red Sea. The Iran-aligned group hit the United Kingdom-owned, Belize-flagged bulk carrier Rubymar on February 18 with multiple missiles. It was sailing through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait which connects the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, on its way to Bulgaria after leaving Khor Fakkan in the United Arab Emirates. Extensive damage prompted the crew, all of whom are safe, to abandon the ship. US Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed on Saturday that the ship was now "anchored but slowly taking on water", which it said has caused a 29-kilometre (18-mile) oil slick.

Yemen's Houthi rebels say they have targeted what they claim to be an Israeli cargo ship, the MSC Silver, in the Gulf of Aden near the entrance to the Red Sea with a number of missiles. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea did not elaborate, but in a statement on Tuesday said the group had also used drones to target a number of United States warships in the Red Sea and Arabian Sea as well as sites in the southern Israeli resort town of Eilat. However, the British maritime security firm Ambrey said the container ship targeted by the Houthis on Tuesday was Liberia-flagged and headed for Somalia. The operator was publicly listed as [in] cooperation with ZIM and regularly called [at] Israeli ports," the Ambrey advisory note said. Zim Integrated Shipping Services Ltd, commonly known as ZIM, is a publicly held Israeli international cargo shipping company based in Israel.

About three hours later, U.S. forces shot down an armed Houthi drone flying over the Gulf of Aden, Central Command said. About five hours after that, the military destroyed an explosives-laden naval drone that Central Command said was launched toward commercial ships and Navy vessels in the Red Sea. There were no injuries or damage reported in either incident. Finally, around 12:45 p.m., two anti-ship ballistic missiles were launched from Houthi-controlled territory, probably toward a Liberian-flagged, Bermuda-owned cargo ship, M/V Koi, in the Red Sea, Central Command said. The missiles landed harmlessly in the water.

Just as Uber announced its first self-driving vehicle Wednesday, a driver in Minnesota has been charged with false imprisonment after attempting to take a passenger to his apartment for "quick sex" against her will, according to reports. Dahir Aden, 50, was officially charged on Wednesday for taking a female passenger to his apartment in West St. Paul for sex against her will. A criminal complaint filed on Aug. 4 said that Aden picked up a woman under the age of 18 in Minneapolis and then picked up her friend. After stopping in South Minneapolis to drop the victim's friend off at work, the complaint said Aden asked the girl if he could take her to his home. When she refused he drove on the highway headed to his apartment anyway and told her he was taking her back to his apartment to have sex.