Aerial drones from the U.S. Air Force and the CIA based in Djibouti are scouring coastal Yemen for Houthi anti-ship missile batteries, one of which launched two missiles at the U.S. Navy destroyer, USS Mason, on Oct. 9. The missiles missed.

 The intensive aerial reconnaissance is seen by military analysts as a prelude for upcoming attacks on these Houthi missiles, which are apparently made in China but supplied to the Houthi rebels by their Shi'a ally, Iran.

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Fortunately for the Americans, the largest U.S. military base in Africa is located at nearby Djibouti, which lies just across the narrow Bab el Mandeb Strait where the USS Mason and another ship, the HSV-2 Swift operated by the United Arab Emirates, were attacked by Houthi ASMs in the space of eight days.

The Swift was hit and severely damaged by one ASM on Oct. 1 but no one was reported killed. Both ASMs launched at the Mason missed, thanks to countermeasures and anti-missile missiles fired by the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer.

Camp Lemonnier, the largest U.S. military base in Africa, is located at Obock on the northern shore of the Gulf of Tadjoura in Djibouti. Obock opens out into the Gulf of Aden and lies to the south of the Bab el Mandeb Strait. The distance from Djibouti to the strait is only some 130 kilometers.

Camp Lemonnier houses over 4,000 U.S. troops and is used for U.S. Special Forces and drone operations against jihadist groups in the region.

The Pentagon said it's considering military retaliation against Houthi militants in Yemen after their attack on the USS Mason.

Captain Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said the U.S. is still assessing who fired missiles at the destroyer when it was in the Red Sea on Sunday.

"Anytime anyone engages a U.S. Navy ship at sea in hostility ... they do so at great peril to themselves," said Capt. Davis.

Asked if that could mean retaliatory strikes against those responsible for firing the missiles, Davis said, "Those things are things that we're looking at."

"We want very much to get to the bottom of what happened. We're going to find out who did this, and we'll take action accordingly."

He said the navy will "get to the bottom of this and we will make sure that anybody who interferes with freedom of navigation or anybody who puts U.S. navy ships at risk does so at their own peril."

Capt. Davis said the ASM used against the Mason was a shore-launched cruise missile. This missile might probably be Iranian.

"It's no secret that Iran has been actively supplying them and giving them the tools of war," said Capt. Davis.

Tagsaerial drones, U.S. Air Force, CIA, Africa, houthi, anti-ship missile, U.S. Navy, USS Mason, Bab el-Mandeb Strait, Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti, Iran, Captain Jeff Davis