Social media accounts posted a photo of an aircraft, claiming it was an American drone that was recently shot down in the Yemeni province of Dhamar. The photo was accompanied by the following text: “Image of the wreckage of the American MQ-9 drone that was shot down by Yemeni air defenses in Dhamar province.”
Kashif verified the image via Google Images search and found it to be old and falsely linked to the recent downing of an American MQ-9 drone by the Ansar Allah group (Houthis). The image was circulated in May 2024 and has no connection to the recent downing of the American drone.
Multiple news websites, including “ Al-Abri News” and “Press Bee,” published the circulated image on 17/5/2024, as part of news reports with the following title: “Gaint plane crashes in Marib.” The websites indicated that according to “the images of the plane’s wreckage circulating on social media platforms, its size and the model of its remote control cockpit suggest it is likely an MQ9 or MQ7 combat drone.”
The Yemeni War Media announced in a statement published on 17/5/2024, that the Yemeni Armed Forces shot down a US MQ-9 spy drone in the airspace of Ma’rib Governorate on Thursday,16/5/2024. The statement added that the US drone was targeted by a locally manufactured surface-to-air missile.
The RT website reported today, Thursday, 20/3/2025, that a Yemeni military source informed the RIA Novosti agency that the air defenses of the Ansar Allah group (Houthis) were able to shoot down an armed American reconnaissance plane while it was flying over the city of Ma’bar in the Jahran district, north of Dhamar Governorate, using a surface-to-air missile.