US Cargo Ship Hit by Missile Off Coast of Yemen, Says UK Maritime Agency

A US-owned cargo ship off the coast of Yemen reported being hit by a missile in the Gulf of Aden, according to the UK maritime agency. The alleged attack comes less than a day after a US fighter jet shot down an anti-ship cruise missile fired by Houthi rebels toward an American destroyer in the Red Sea on Sunday.

According to a BBC report, the UKMTO quoted the ship’s master as saying the boat took a hit on its port side. The UKMTO further said authorities are investigating and has advised vessels in transit to exercise “extreme caution”.

While the US CENTCOM has reported it as an Anti-ship Ballistic Missile (ASBM) attack, the UKTMO also indicated the same.

Ambrey, a British maritime risk company, stated that a fire broke out on board the Marshall Islands-flagged, US-owned bulk carrier, Hindustan Times reported.

The company “assessed the attack to have targeted US interests in response to US military strikes on Houthi military positions in Yemen”, Ambrey noted. The vessel was “assessed to not be Israel-affiliated”, it added.

According to information from sources within the monitoring agencies, some damage to the vessel has been reported in the attack.

Houthis did not immediately acknowledge any attack.

The attack comes after the US and UK launched joint strikes at Houthi sites in Yemen.

No injuries or damage was reported in Sunday’s attack, which marked the first attack by the Houthis since America and allied nations began strikes on the rebels following weeks of assaults on shipping in the Red Sea.

“On January 14 at approximately 4:45 pm (Sanaa time) an anti-ship cruise missile fired from Iranian-backed Huthi militant areas of Yemen toward USS Laboon (DDG 58), which was operating in the Southern Red Sea,” the United States Central Command said in a statement.

Who Are Houthis?

The Houthi group is an armed militant group of the Zaydi Shia sect in Yemen backed by Iran. The group came to prominence fighting against Yemen’s Sunni-majority government since 2014.

The Houthi movement embraces a hard-line Islamist ideology. Their official slogan reads “God is the greatest, death to America, death to Israel. Curse the Jews, victory to Islam.”

The group is designated a “terrorist group” by the UN Security Council. The US had also classified the group as a terrorist group until 2021, but the Biden Administration later removed it from the list of officially designated terrorists.