American forces have destroyed seven drones and a control station vehicle in Huthi-controlled areas of in Yemen over the past 24 hours, the US military said Friday.

The strikes were carried out because the drones and the vehicle “presented an imminent threat to US coalition forces, and merchant vessels in the region,” the US Central Command said in a statement on X.

The Iran-backed Huthis have been targeting vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November 2023 in attacks they say are in solidarity with Palestinians during the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.