(Dubai) A ship was damaged in two attacks off Yemen’s southwest coast on Friday, the British Maritime Safety Agency (UKMTO) said.
The ship’s captain reported two attacks that occurred 14 nautical miles southwest of the Yemeni town of Mokha, the agency said.
The crew felt an initial explosion nearby, before the boat was “hit by what is believed to be two missiles, which damaged the vessel,” said UKMTO, which did not report any casualties. .
These attacks were not immediately claimed.
The British security company Ambrey reported an incident in the same area where “three missiles were seen. A Panamanian-flagged tanker was the closest vessel to these missiles.”
“The tanker was associated with the United Kingdom, before changing ownership in November 2023,” according to the company.
Currently, “the ship’s owner is registered in Seychelles and carries out commercial activities linked to Russia. The tanker was en route from Primorsk, Russia, to Vadinar, India,” Ambrey added.
The Houthis, rebels in Yemen who control large swaths of the country, have been carrying out attacks since November against ships they consider linked to Israel, claiming to act in solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where a war pits Israel against Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas.
Faced with Houthi attacks, the United States, Israel’s supporter, set up a multinational maritime protection force in the Red Sea in December and launched, with the help of the United Kingdom, strikes in Yemen against the rebels.
Despite the slowdown in their attacks in recent weeks, the Houthis said on Wednesday that they were “continuing their military actions against all hostile targets in the Red Sea, the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean.”