US NAVY FACES ITS MOST INTENSE COMBAT SINCE WORLD WAR II AGAINST YEMEN'S IRAN-BACKED HOUTHI REBELS

ABOARD THE USS LABOON IN THE RED SEA (AP) — The U.S.led campaign against Iran-backed Houthi rebels has turned into the most intense running sea battle the Navy has faced since World War II. That's what its leaders and experts tell The Associated Press, whose journalists visited U.S. ships off Yemen in recent days. The fight against the near-daily attacks by the Houthis has been overshadowed by the…