Yemen's Houthi rebels targeted two U.S. Navy warships with multiple drones and missiles as they were traveling through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, but the attacks were not successful, the Defense Department said Tuesday.

Yemen’s Houthi rebels have shot down what they described as an American drone, potentially the latest downing of a U.S. spy drone as the militants continue their attacks on the Red Sea corridor

The attack on the ships was the latest in months of violence in the region by the Yemen rebels, who are backed by Iran and have targeted commercial shipping as well as the U.S. naval forces deployed to the region.

A multiple-missile attack by Yemen's Houthi rebels on two US warships has been thwarted, the Pentagon has said. At least eight drones, five anti-ship ballistic missiles and three anti-ship cruise missiles were aimed at the USS Stockdale and the USS Spruance on Monday.

The US military carried out a series of airstrikes on Houthi weapons warehouses in Yemen. The operation was conducted in response to terrorist attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea, reports the United States Central Command (CENTCOM).