US-owned ship hit by missile off Yemen

LONDON : Missile fire struck a ship just off the coast of Yemen in the Gulf of Aden, the British military said. Trade Operations said the attack happened some 110 miles (177 kilometers) miles southeast of Aden and the ship’s captain reported that the “port side of vessel hit from above by a missile.”

Missile fire struck a ship just off the coast of Yemen in the Gulf of Aden, the British military said. Trade Operations said the attack happened some 110 miles (177 kilometers) miles southeast of Aden and the ship’s captain reported that the “port side of vessel hit from above by a missile.”

The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said authorities are investigating and has advised vessels in transit to exercise “extreme caution”. The ship is owned by Eagle Bulk, a Stamford, Connecticut-based firm traded on the New York Stock Exchange, Associated Press reported.

Ambrey, a British maritime risk company, said that a fire broke out on board the Marshall Islands-flagged, US-owned bulk carrier. The company “assessed the attack to have targeted US interests in response to US military strikes on Houthi military positions in Yemen”, Ambrey said. The vessel was “assessed to not be Israel-affiliated”, it said.

Yemen’s Houthi rebels did not immediately acknowledge any attack, though they have fired missiles previously in that area. This comes after Houthis fired an anti-ship cruise missile toward an American destroyer in the Red Sea earlier. The US fighter jet shot it down in the latest attack on global shipping amid Israel’s war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The Houthis have targeted the crucial corridor linking Asian and Mideast energy and cargo shipments to the Suez Canal onward to Europe to show support for Hamas. The missile came from near Hodeida, US said, adding, “An anti-ship cruise missile was fired from Iranian-backed Houthi militant areas of Yemen toward USS Laboon. There were no injuries or damage reported.”