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Houthis get critical support from Iran for Red Sea attacks, U.S. Navy admiral says
Iranian support has been critical for the Houthis as they bombard commercial ships in the Red Sea, Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, deputy commander of U.S. Central Command, said in a recent “60 Minutes” interview.
The Houthis, a Shia militia from Yemen, have targeted at least 45 ships in recent months, disrupting crucial international shipping corridors, even as the U.S. Navy has moved into the Red Sea to push back against the group. They’re being aided by members of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard Corps, Cooper said.
“The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps is inside Yemen, and they are serving side by side with the Houthis, advising them and providing target information,” Cooper said.
That support goes back a decade, Cooper said, with Iran providing supplies to the Houthis for years.
“They’re resupplying them as we sit here right now at sea,” Cooper said. “We know this is happening. They’re advising them, and they’re providing target information. This is crystal clear.”
On Thursday, U.S. Central Command announced that on Jan. 28, a U.S. Coast Guard ship in the Arabian Sea seized weapons originating in Iran and bound for Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen. The boarding team found more than 200 packages containing medium-range ballistic missile components, explosives, unmanned underwater/surface vehicle components, military-grade communication and network equipment, anti-tank guided missile launcher assemblies and other military components.
“This is yet another example of Iran’s malign activity in the region,” Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, CENTCOM commander, said in a statement. “Their continued supply of advanced conventional weapons to the Houthis is in direct violation of international law and continues to undermine the safety of international shipping and the free flow of commerce.”
Houthi attacks on ships began after war broke out in Israel and Gaza, even though President Biden had warned Iran and its allies to stay out of the conflict.
The Houthis, who seized Yemen’s capital in 2014 and now control about one third of the country, initially stated they would only shoot at ships linked to Israel, but the Houthis have fired at ships tied to dozens of nations. The U.S. government in January re-designated the Houthi movement as a terrorist organization as the group stepped up attacks in the Red Sea.
Amid the ongoing attacks, Norah O’Donnell headed to the Red Sea. She was the first journalist to report from the southern Red Sea in the air, on the water, and inside a U.S. military command center. Her full report on the Red Sea crisis is set to air on 60 Minutes on Feb. 18, 2024.
NEW YORK — Former New York Gov. David Paterson and his stepson were attacked in New York City on Friday night, authorities said.
The incident occurred just before 9 p.m. on Second Avenue near East 96th Street on the Upper East Side, according to the New York City Police Department.
Police said officers were sent to the scene after an assault was reported. When officers arrived, police say they found a 20-year-old man suffering from facial injuries and a 70-year-old man who had head pain. Both victims were taken to a local hospital in stable condition.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the former governor said the two were attacked while “taking a walk around the block near their home by some individuals that had a previous interaction with his stepson.”
The spokesperson said that they were injured “but were able to fight off their attackers.”
Both were taken to Cornell Hospital “as a precaution,” he added.
Police said no arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.
The 70-year-old Paterson, a Democrat, served as governor from 2008 to 2010, stepping into the post after the resignation of Eliot Spitzer following his prostitution scandal. He made history at the time as the state’s first-ever Black and legally blind governor.
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A 17-year-old boy was critically injured and a person is in custody after a gunman opened fire on a SEPTA bus in North Philadelphia Friday evening, police said.
At around 6:15 p.m., Philadelphia police were notified about a shooting on a SEPTA bus traveling on Allegheny Avenue near 3rd and 4th streets in North Philadelphia, Inspector D F Pace told CBS News Philadelphia.
There were an estimated 30 people on the bus at the time of the shooting, Pace said, but only the 17-year-old boy was believed to have been shot. Investigators said they believe it was a targeted attack on the teenager and that he was shot in the back of the bus at close range.
According to Pace, the SEPTA bus driver alerted a control center about the shooting, which then relayed the message to Philadelphia police, who responded to the scene shortly.
Officers arrived at the scene and found at least one spent shell casing and blood on the bus, but no shooting victim, Pace said. Investigators later discovered the 17-year-old had been taken to Temple University Hospital where he is said to be in critical condition, according to police.
CBS Philadelphia
Through their preliminary investigation, police learned those involved in the SEPTA shooting may have fled in a silver-colored Kia.
Authorities then found a car matching the description of the Kia speeding in the area and a pursuit began, Pace said. Police got help from a PPD helicopter as they followed the Kia, which ended up crashing at 5th and Greenwood streets in East Mount Airy. Pace said the Kia crashed into a parked car.
The driver of the crashed car ran away but police were still able to take them into custody, Pace said.
Investigators believe there was a second person involved in the shooting who ran from the car before it crashed. Police said they believe this person escaped near Allegheny Avenue and 4th Street, leaving a coat behind.
According to Pace, police also found a gun and a group of spent shell casings believed to be involved in the shooting in the same area.
“It’s very possible that there may have been a shooting inside the bus and also shots fired from outside of the bus toward the bus,” Pace said, “We’re still trying to piece all that together at this time.”
This is an active investigation and police are reviewing surveillance footage from the SEPTA bus.