WASHINGTON July 21. 2024 (Saba) - Captain Justin Smith, commander of the USS Mason, which recently left the region, has confirmed that the ongoing conflict in the Red Sea surpasses the dangers of the tanker war in the Gulf during the Iran-Iraq war, marking the most intense combat since World War II.
In a report by Business Insider, Smith stated: "The US Navy has spent months combating missiles and drones that threaten both warships and civilian vessels alike, primarily from the Ansar Allah movement, in a high-paced operational environment described as the heaviest combat the service has seen in nearly eight decades."
The commanding officer of another destroyer deployed in the Red Sea, the USS Carney, described the anti-ship ballistic missiles used by the Ansar Allah movement as an extremely challenging threat due to their speed and dynamic nature. "We only have seconds to respond to the missile, otherwise it will be too late," he explained.
Smith further elaborated, “In addition to anti-ship missiles, Ansar Allah has demonstrated their effectiveness in using drone boats loaded with explosives to strike commercial ships belonging to the Zionist entity. These ships are largely unprotected, unlike American warships in the region, which have not been bombed so far despite some nearby incidents."
"The challenges – from detection, sustainment, surveillance teams, and readiness – are much higher, and for that reason, I compare this to World War II more than I can say even beyond what was seen during the Tanker War," Captain Smith noted.
H.H
resource : Saba
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