The commander of the U.S. Fifth Fleet, Brad Cooper, revealed on Wednesday that an Iranian drone flew in an unprofessional and unsafe manner near the aircraft carrier "Eisenhower" yesterday. He continued: "The Iranian drone approached as close as 1,500 meters from the aircraft carrier Eisenhower despite warnings. The aircraft carrier was operating in the international waters of the Arabian Gulf when the incident occurred." He commented: "Iran's unsafe, unprofessional, and irresponsible behavior threatens the lives of Americans and must stop."
Two U.S. officials stated on Wednesday that a U.S. Navy warship shot down a drone believed to have launched from Yemen in the Red Sea, marking the latest defensive action by the U.S. military in the region in recent weeks. The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, reported that the drone was shot down by the destroyer Carney. They noted that this is preliminary information that may change and did not indicate who might be responsible for the drone launch in Yemen.
The International Chamber of Shipping stated, "Attacks must stop immediately, and innocent sailors must be released." It added in a statement, "In any case, these vessels are exercising their right to freedom of navigation and innocent passage."
