 U.S. Navy destroyer shoots down missiles, drones headed to Israel. The USS Kani, a naval destroyer of the U.S. in the Red Sea, has shut down multiple missiles and drones launched by Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen, weapons that the Pentagon says were heading along the Red Sea potentially towards targets in Israel. Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder said that the Pentagon could not yet say exactly what the missiles and drones were aimed at. However, it is known that they were launched from Yemen and headed north along the Red Sea potentially towards targets in Israel. This action was a demonstration of the integrated air and missile defense architecture that we have built in the Middle East and that we are prepared to utilize whenever necessary to protect our partners and our interests in this important region. Ryder said he said that the United States is ready to use its air and missile defenses in the Middle East to protect its partners and interests in the region. Another source said that the missile was fired by Iranian-backed Houthi militants involved in the conflict in Yemen. The U.S. has said the increased presence is intended to deter malign actors such as Hezbollah or Iran from expanding the conflict. The USS Dwight Eisenhower aircraft carrier strike group is headed across the Atlantic to join the USS Gerald Ford carrier strike group which is operating in the eastern Mediterranean. Three ships with the USS Batan amphibious ready group are positioning thousands of Marines in waters near Israel. A squadron of A-10 attack aircraft has arrived in the Middle East with another A-10 squadron's deployment extended. More F-15 and F-16 fighter jets also are rolling into the region.