The Houthis, a rebel group mainly backed by Iran that attacks international commercial vessels in the Red Sea, have a hypersonic missile in their arsenal that could raise tensions in the conflict against the United States and the alliance of countries seeking to protect international trade.
According to a report from the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti published this Thursday, a military official close to the rebel group revealed the obtaining of the hypersonic missile, which flies at a speed of Mach 8, eight times faster than the speed of sound. However, the report did not show independent evidence of the missile.
“The group’s missile forces have successfully tested a missile that is capable of reaching speeds of up to Mach 8 and runs on solid fuel,” the official said, according to the RIA report. “[The Houthis] They intend to begin manufacturing it for use during attacks in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, as well as against targets in Israel.”
According to the report, a hypersonic missile could challenge the effectiveness of the defense systems of the United States and its allies as they try to protect commercial vessels in the Red Sea.
“The danger from a hypersonic missile depends on how maneuverable it is. Ballistic missiles fly on a trajectory in which anti-missile systems like the U.S.-made Patriot can anticipate their path and intercept them. The more irregular the missile’s flight path, such as a hypersonic missile with the ability to change directions, the more difficult it becomes to intercept,” reported the AP agency.
For now, the United States has managed to shoot down all missiles or drones that came close to its warships in the Middle East.
The news comes as Russia, in the midst of the war against Ukraine, increases its anti-Western narrative through its state media and its own officials.
The report of the alleged hypersonic missile also comes at a time when the Houthis have been boasting for weeks about supposed “surprises” that they are preparing for maritime battles against the United States and its allies.
In recent weeks, the supreme leader of the Houthi rebels, Abdul Malik al-Houth, boasted about the weapons advances of the militia he leads, stating in February that “We have surprises that the enemies do not expect at all.”
“The enemy ... will see the level of achievements of strategic importance that place our country in its capabilities among the limited and numbered countries in this world,” Al-Houthi said a week ago.
Despite not having many resources, Western intelligence has determined that Iran is the main benefactor of the Houthis, who began their attacks against international trade in the midst of the war between Israel and Hamas.
Likewise, Tehran assures that it already has hypersonic missiles.
Last June, the Iranian regime presented the Fattah missile, also known as “conqueror” in Farsi, which was called “hypersonic.”
