A US warship opened fire on a drone that was heading towards it from Yemen, a Pentagon official said on Wednesday, as quoted by AFP.

Two officials told Reuters on condition of anonymity that the drone had been shot down this morning, but declined to say whether it was armed or where it was.

But Iran-backed Yemeni Houthi rebels have claimed drone and missile attacks since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas on October 7.

The guided-missile destroyer USS Thomas Hudner “fired at a drone that was coming from Yemen and was heading toward the ship,” the official said, without specifying where the incident occurred.

Last month, the US Navy shot down several missiles and drones it said were launched by Houthi rebels, who control the Yemeni capital Sana’a and are “part of an axis of resistance” against Israel.

The war began on October 7 with a bloody attack by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas on Israeli territory, the first of its kind since Israel’s creation. According to the authorities, about 1,200 people died, most of them civilians.

In response, Israel has vowed to “destroy” Hamas, which it considers a “terrorist” organization, along with the United States and the European Union, and has relentlessly bombed the Gaza Strip, which is under total siege.

According to the Health Ministry of Hamas, which controls the territory of Palestine, 11,500 people, mostly civilians, including 4,710 children, died as a result of Israeli shelling.

The deaths sparked deep outrage in the Middle East and fueled attacks on US forces in the region and on Israel.

Last week, Houthi rebels said they shot down a US drone, while US forces in Iraq and Syria have been targeted by drones and missiles.