U.S. warplane shot down by "friendly fire" over Red Sea

ADEN, Yemen, Dec. 22 (Xinhua) -- Two U.S. Navy pilots ejected safely after their fighter jet was shot down Sunday over the Red Sea in an apparent "friendly fire" incident, said the U.S. military.

"The guided-missile cruiser USS Gettysburg, which is part of the USS Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group, mistakenly fired on and hit the F/A-18," U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement.

Both pilots were recovered alive after ejecting from their stricken aircraft, with one suffering minor injuries, according to the statement.

The apparent friendly fire incident came the same day U.S. forces conducted airstrikes on a missile storage facility and a command-and-control facility reportedly operated by the Houthis group within Sanaa, Yemen.

"CENTCOM forces conducted the deliberate strikes to disrupt and degrade Houthi operations, such as attacks against U.S. Navy warships and merchant vessels in the Southern Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb, and Gulf of Aden," CENTCOM said in a separate statement.

U.S. forces also shot down multiple Houthi one-way attack drones and an anti-ship cruise missile over the Red Sea, it said.

The U.S. military operations came hours after the Houthis claimed responsibility for a ballistic missile attack on central Israel, which injured at least 20 Israelis in Tel Aviv.

Since November 2023, the Houthis have been carrying out rocket and drone attacks on Israeli cities and disrupting "Israeli-linked" shipping in the Red Sea.

In response, the U.S.-led navy coalition stationed in the area has been conducting regular air raids on Houthi targets since January in a bid to deter the armed group.