Suspected Yemen Houthi attack hits ship in Gulf of Aden, causing ‘fatalities’

A suspected attack by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militia on a commercial ship in the Gulf of Aden caused “fatalities” and forced the crew to abandon the vessel on Wednesday, authorities said, the first fatal attack in a campaign of assaults by the group over Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The attack came as a US destroyer separately shot down drones and a missile launched by the Houthis and as the Indian navy released images of it fighting a fire aboard a container ship earlier targeted by the rebels.

The attack Wednesday in the Gulf of Aden targeted a Barbados-flagged bulk carrier called True Confidence, which earlier had been hailed over radio by individuals claiming to be the Yemeni military, officials said. The Houthis have been hailing ships over the radio in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since launching their attacks, with analysts suspecting the militants want to seize the vessels.

The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center described the True Confidence as reportedly being hit in the attack and sustaining damage.

The extent of the damage to the Liberian-flagged ship remained unclear, but the crew fled the ship and deployed lifeboats — signaling a serious incident, said a US defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters.

Two other US officials, also speaking on condition of anonymity as they didn’t have authorization to speak publicly, acknowledged the attack caused “fatalities,” without elaborating.

A US warship and the Indian navy were on the scene, trying to assist in rescue efforts, the official said.

The UKMTO on Wednesday night acknowledged the ship had been abandoned by its crew and was no longer under command.

The Houthis didn’t immediately claim the attack, though it typically takes several hours for them to acknowledge an assault.

Since November, the Houthis have repeatedly targeted ships in the Red Sea and surrounding waters over the Israel-Hamas war. Those vessels have included at least one with cargo bound for Iran, the Houthis’ main benefactor, and an aid ship later bound for Houthi-controlled territory.

Despite more than a month and a half of US-led airstrikes, the Houthis have remained capable of launching significant attacks. They include the attack last month on a cargo ship carrying fertilizer, the Rubymar, which sank on Saturday after drifting for several days, and the downing of an American drone worth tens of millions of dollars.

It was unclear why the Houthis targeted the True Confidence. However, it had previously been owned by Oaktree Capital Management, a Los Angeles-based fund that finances vessels on installments. Oaktree declined to comment.

Meanwhile, a separate Houthi assault Tuesday apparently targeted the USS Carney, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer that has been involved in the American campaign against the rebels.

The Houthi attack on the Carney on Tuesday involved bomb-carrying drones and one anti-ship ballistic missile, the US military’s Central Command said.

The US later launched an airstrike destroying three anti-ship missiles and three bomb-carrying drone boats, the Central Command said.

Yahya Saree, a Houthi military spokesperson, acknowledged the attack, but claimed its forces targeted two American warships, without elaborating.

The Houthis “will not stop until the aggression is stopped and the siege on the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip is lifted,” Saree said.

Saree did not acknowledge the later US airstrikes. The Houthis haven’t offered any assessment of the damage they’ve suffered in the American-led strikes that began in January, though they’ve said at least 22 of their fighters have been killed.

Meanwhile, the Indian navy released a video of its sailors from the INS Kolkata fighting a fire aboard the MSC Sky II, which had been targeted by the Houthis in the Gulf of Aden on Monday. Smoke poured out of one container aboard the vessel, which also showed scorch marks from the impact of a Houthi missile.

The Mediterranean Shipping Co., a Switzerland-based company, said the missile struck the ship as it was traveling from Singapore to Djibouti.

“The missile caused a small fire that has been extinguished while no crew were injured,” the company said.

-With the Associated Press