AT LEAST two people have died following a missile attack by Houthi rebels on a cargo ship off southern Yemen, US officials said.
It is the first fatal attack in a campaign launched by the Iran-aligned Yemeni group in November over the ongoing war in Gaza.
Barbados-flagged freighter True Confidence was struck in the Gulf of Aden and survivors were forced to abandon the vessel in lifeboats, a US official confirmed.
Two crew members were killed and six wounded, with the extent of the damage to the ship currently unclear.
United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said today: “UKMTO has received a report of an incident 54NM southwest of Aden, Yemen.
“A merchant vessel in position 115542N 0443024E has been hit and has suffered damage. The vessel has been abandoned by the crew and is no longer under command (NUC).”
It added that Coalition Forces were “supporting the vessel and the crew”.
A US warship and the Indian navy are on scene trying to assist in rescue efforts, The Independent reports.
Houthi military spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Saree claimed the attack in a pre-recorded message and said the rebels’ missile fire set the vessel ablaze.
He added that the group’s attacks would only stop when “siege on the Palestinian people in Gaza is lifted”.
It comes after the Houthis sunk a British cargo ship in the Red Sea.
The ship’s crew was also forced to “abandon the vessel” after it was attacked off the coast of Yemen.
The rebels have repeatedly targeted international shipping groups ships in the Red Sea since late last year, purportedly in solidarity with Palestinians amid the ongoing Gaza war.
Several shipping companies have been forced to reroute their vessels passing through the Suez Canal and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait to take a longer alternative route around South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope.
Such changes have resulted in major delays and impacted companies including Suzuki, Tesla, BP, Shell, Qatar Energy, DHL, FedEx, Adidas, Marks & Spencer, Next, Primark, Sainsbury’s, and Target.
And the price of global shipping containers has jumped by more than 300 per cent between November and January.
The US Department of Defence announced in December that a multinational operation to protect trade and ships in the Red Sea was being launched in response to the escalated Houthi attacks.
