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.

The Iran-backed group launched drones, fired missiles at two US warships in an hours-long attack, the Pentagon says.

Houthis attacked US vessels, which the Pentagon said included eight drones, five anti-ship ballistic missiles, and three anti-ship cruise missiles.

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.

For more than a year, U.S. warships have shot down Houthi drones and missiles, but the rebels continue to menace shipping in the Red Sea.

The US Navy confirmed that at least eight drones, five anti-ship ballistic missiles, and three anti-ship cruise missiles were launched at the USS Stockdale and the USS Spruance on Monday (Nov 11).

Houthi rebels used missiles and drones to attack the American aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea. They also reportedly struck two American destroyers in the Red Sea, according to a military representative of the radical organization,