DUBAI: Yemen’s Houthi militant group on Friday claimed responsibility for attacking a Liberia-flagged vessel in the Red Sea that a maritime agency said had survived five missiles, while also saying they targeted three other vessels including two in the Mediterranean.
The Iran-aligned Houthis say their attacks on shipping lanes are in solidarity with Palestinians in the war between Israel and the militant Islamist group Hamas.
Yahya Saree, the Houthi military spokesperson, said in a televised statement that the group launched ballistic missiles at the Delonix, an oil tanker, and that it took a “direct hit.”
However, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) monitor said earlier in the day that the ship, which was targeted 150 nautical miles (172 miles) northwest of the Yemeni port of Hodeidah, reported no damage and was heading northward.
Saree also said the Houthis attacked the Ioannis ship in the Red Sea, as well as the Waler oil tanker and the Johannes Maersk vessel in the Mediterranean.
He said the Johannes Maersk, which is owned by Maersk , the world’s second-largest container carrier, was targeted because it belongs to “one of the most supportive companies for the Zionist entity and the most that violates ban decision of access to the ports of occupied Palestine.”
Also on Friday, the US military's Central Command (CENTCOM) said American forces operating in waters off Yemen have destroyed seven drones and a control station vehicle in Houthi-controlled areas over the past 24 hours.
This handout grab of a video taken and released by the French 'Etat-Major des Armees' on March 20, 2024, shows a Houthi UAV threatening commercial navigation prior to its destruction by a French army helicopter from a French destroyer patrolling in The Red Sea. (AFP/File)
The strikes were carried out because the drones and the vehicle “presented an imminent threat to US coalition forces, and merchant vessels in the region,” the US Central Command said in a statement on X.
The statement did not react to the Houthis' claims. In a previous post on X dated June 24, CENTCOM reported that the Trans World Navigator, a Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned bulk cargo carrier, was hit in a Houthi drone attack and the crew reported minor injuries.
The United States and Britain have carried out strikes in Yemen aimed at degrading the rebels’ ability to carry out attacks, while there is also an international military effort to intercept drones and missiles fired at ships.
“These actions were taken to protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure,” CENTCOM said.
“This continued malign and reckless behavior by the Iranian-backed Houthis threatens regional stability and endangers the lives of mariners across the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.”
International shipping has been disrupted since November by attacks in the region launched by the Houthis. Many vessels have opted to avoid the Red Sea route to the Suez Canal, taking the longer journey around the southern tip of Africa instead.
