Houthis launch series of attacks on ships near Yemen
British, Israeli and US vessels have come under fire from rocket and drone attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi militia off the coast of Yemen.
The latest assaults took place over the last three days and come amid a maritime blockade by the terror group, which it says is in support of Palestinians in Gaza.
In a televised statement, Yahya Saree, a Houthi spokesman, claimed responsibility for the attacks that targeted a British ship and two Israeli vessels heading to Israeli ports, as well as a number of US frigates in the Red Sea.
Calling it “a response to the American British aggression against our country”, he said five military operations had been carried out in the past 72 hours by naval and air forces.
He claimed there was a direct hit on the British container ship Hope Island, which has not been confirmed, and that other vessels were attacked with ballistic missiles and drones.
The Houthis, who control Yemen’s most populous areas, including the capital, have attacked international shipping in the Red Sea region since November.
That has sparked a US-led coalition of over 20 nations attempting to counter the attacks, which have disrupted global shipping, forced firms to re-route to longer and more expensive journeys around southern Africa, and stoked fears that the Israel-Hamas war could destabilise the wider Middle East.
Around 424 US and British airstrikes on targets in Yemen since February have killed 37 people and wounded 30, according to Abdul Malik al-Houthi, the Houthi leader, in a bid to quash the blockade on one of the world’s most critical trade routes.
While the Houthis claimed its blockade was designed to target Israeli-linked shipping, it has in fact had a global reach.
In March, three seamen on a Greek-owned, Barbados-flagged ship were killed by Houthi missile fire.
Meanwhile, 25 hostages from countries including Romania and Mexico remain captive since November, taken by the terror group after the hijacking of the Galaxy Leader.
