Vessel on fire off Yemen after being struck in apparent attack, UK military says

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A missile attack likely launched by the Houthis set a ship ablaze in the Gulf of Aden on Monday, the UK military said after local media in Yemen reported a possible ballistic missile launch from territory controlled by the Iran-backed rebels.

Shortly after the launch, a ship in the Gulf of Aden, some 235 kilometres off the coast of the eponymous city, reported seeing “a splash and smoke” in the distance, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre reported.

UKMTO said “a vessel has been hit by an unknown projectile” and urged ships in the area to exercise caution, as did the private security firm Ambrey.

“The vessel is reported to be on fire,” the maritime trade centre said.

Ambrey later acknowledged the strike as well, which mirrored an attack on 23 September that missed a ship.

The Houthis did not immediately claim responsibility for the presumed strike, but it can take hours or even days before the Yemeni militants claim their attacks.

The Houthi rebels have been launching missile and drone attacks on Israel and on ships in the Red Sea, which they say have links to Israel, in response to the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, saying they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians.

The Houthi attacks over the past two years have disrupted shipping along the key Red Sea route, through which approximately $1 trillion (€852 billion) of goods passed annually before the war.

The Houthis stopped their strikes during a brief ceasefire in January. Still, they later became the target of an intense weekslong campaign of air strikes ordered by US President Donald Trump before he declared a ceasefire had been reached with the rebels.

The Houthis sank two vessels in July, killing at least four crew members on board, with others believed to be held by the rebels.

Additional sources • AP