Yemen’s Houthi fighters have shot down seven US Reaper drones worth over $200 million in recent weeks.

This loss marks the biggest material hit in America’s efforts against the Houthis.

The drones were destroyed from March 31 to April 22. Defence officials say the Houthis are increasing attacks on US aircraft flying over Yemen.

Three drones were lost just last week, showing the Houthis are getting better at hitting high-altitude US targets. Each drone, costing around $30 million, was on surveillance or attack missions when it crashed into water or land. A defence official told the Associated Press that strikes happened on March 31 and April 3, 9, 13, 18, 19 and 22.

Since March 15, when US President Donald Trump ordered daily strikes against the Houthis, many civilians in parts of Yemen under Houthi control have been killed or wounded.

Central Command spokesperson Dave Eastburn said the US has hit more than 800 targets. These include command centres, weapons stores and air defence sites.

The US claims to have killed hundreds of Houthi fighters and leaders. These claims cannot be independently verified.An unnamed US official told the AP that the drone losses are being looked into. They are likely from hostile fire, the official said.The Houthis have mainly attacked ships passing through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. Their targets are ships from Israel, the US and Britain. The group says they will stop attacking if Israel agrees to a permanent ceasefire.