Report Claims Houthis Down US Drone Over Yemen’s Marib Province

2026-05-18 07:51:43

(MENAFN) A US surveillance drone was reportedly shot down by Yemen’s Houthi group in the eastern Marib Governorate, according to local media accounts on Monday.

Residents in Marib city reported hearing loud explosions and observed the launch of an air defense missile from the Sarwah area, west of the city. This was followed by two midair blasts, as stated by local media outlets including the Defense Line platform.

Images circulated on social media allegedly showed wreckage believed to be from the US MQ-9 Reaper drone scattered in a desert area east of the Wadi district, according to the reports.

Defense Line also reported that some of the debris appeared to include remnants of AGM-114R9X “Ninja” missiles, a modified Hellfire variant designed for precision targeting.

The platform further stated that the debris confirmed the aircraft was a US MQ-9 Reaper, which is used for surveillance and counterterrorism missions in Yemen.

Neither the Houthi group nor the US military has issued an official comment regarding the reported incident.

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