Two U.S. Navy pilots eject safely after fighter jet was shot down over the Red Sea by what was likely friendly fire, officials say

Two US Navy pilots were shot down over the Red Sea in an apparent friendly fire incident, the US military said on Sunday. Both pilots were rescued alive, one suffered minor injuries in the incident.

The incident occurred as the US military conducted targeted airstrikes The Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemenalthough the U.S. military’s Central Command did not elaborate on its mission at the time.

“The guided-missile cruiser USS Gettysburg, part of the USS Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group, accidentally fired at and hit the F/A-18 flying from the USS Harry S. Truman,” Central Command said in a statement.

Earlier Saturday, CENTCOM reported that it conducted precision air strikes against a missile site and a command and control facility in Houthi-controlled territory in Sanaa, Yemen.

The strikes were carried out in response to the ongoing strikes Houthi attacks on U.S. Navy warships and merchant vessels in the southern Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, and the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

During the operation, CENTCOM troops also shot down several Houthi attack drones and an anti-ship cruise missile over the Red Sea, the agency said.

A rocket early Saturday morning fired from Yemen At least 16 people were injured in an area of ​​Tel Aviv. The Houthis issued a statement on Telegram saying they had aimed a hypersonic missile at a military target they did not identify.