SANAA/ADEN, Yemen - Yemen's Houthi group said early Saturday that they had launched a missile attack and hit a British oil tanker in the Red Sea and shot down a US drone in northern Yemen.

"Our naval forces (on Friday) targeted a British oil ship, Andromeda Star, in the Red Sea with a number of appropriate naval missiles and hit it directly," Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea read a statement in the Houthi-run al-Masirah TV channel.

"On Thursday, our air defense forces succeeded in shooting down an American MQ9 aircraft in the airspace of Saada Governorate (northern Yemen), while it was carrying out hostile missions and it was targeted by a suitable missile," he said.

"We confirm that we will continue to carry out more military operations in support of the Palestinian people until the Israeli siege and aggression against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip stop," the spokesman said.

We confirm that we will continue to carry out more military operations in support of the Palestinian people until the Israeli siege and aggression against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip stop.

Yahya Sarea, Houthi military spokesman

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Agency reported on its website that a ship was damaged off Yemen after a missile attack on Friday. It didn't identify the ship nor gave further details.

The Houthis have been targeting Israeli-linked ships or ships heading to Israeli ports in the Red Sea since November last year in solidarity with Palestinians engaged in conflict with Israel.

A coalition of US and British naval forces in the Red Sea has been launching airstrikes on Houthi military targets since January, which were responded to by the Houthis with more intensified attacks that targeted the coalition's warships.

ALSO READ: Yemen's Houthis claim attacks on Israel’s Eilat, ship in Gulf of Aden

On Friday, Abdul Malik al-Houthi, the leader of the Houthis, vowed to continue its naval operations in the Red Sea, rejecting media reports suggesting a decrease in Houthi maritime attacks, al-Masirah TV reported.

In a televised speech addressing a large rally in Sanaa, the Houthi leader said their maritime operations had expanded into the Indian Ocean, calling it "a new theater of confrontation."

Abdul Malik al-Houthi, the leader of the Houthis, claimed that his group had attacked 102 vessels linked to Israel since the onset of the Israel-Hamas conflict on Oct 7, 2023, adding that "successful strikes against Israeli-affiliated ships, occurring at a rate of approximately one every two days", underscore the group's naval capabilities

Al-Houthi also claimed that his group had attacked 102 vessels linked to Israel since the onset of the Israel-Hamas conflict on Oct 7, 2023, adding that "successful strikes against Israeli-affiliated ships, occurring at a rate of approximately one every two days", underscore the group's naval capabilities.

He added that the US and British forces had failed to ensure safe passage for these vessels despite the two countries' intensive military operations.

Al-Houthi also refuted media reports indicating a decline in maritime attacks, insisting that their operations continue unabated, contradicting claims made by American officials.

READ MORE: Yemen's Houthis claim targeting US, Israeli ships

Large-scale protests were held on Friday across provinces controlled by the Houthi group, where millions of protestors voiced their support for the Houthi attacks on the maritime trade routes and condemned Israel for its relentless attacks in Gaza.