Red Sea: Houthis target another container vessel in the Gulf of Aden

The Iran-backed Yemeni militant group launched two ballistic anti-ship missiles at a Liberian-flagged and Swiss-owned container vessel yesterday, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said.

PHOTO: Cargo vessels crossing the Suez Canal. Getty Images

Houthi militants fired the missiles at M/V MSC SKY II, a containership owned by Swiss shipping major Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), US CENTCOM said.

The attacks were launched from the Houthi-controlled areas off Yemen’s coast into the Gulf of Aden with one missile causing damage to the vessel, US CENTCOM reported.

The vessel was attacked 91 nautical miles southeast of Yemen’s Aden Port, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency.

“Initial reports indicate there were no injuries; the ship did not request assistance and continued on its way,” US CENTCOM said.

The Yemeni militia’s spokesperson Yahya Sare’e took to social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to claim responsibility for the attack on the container vessel in the Gulf of Aden.

Insurgency in the Red Sea

The Houthis have consistently attacked commercial ships transiting through the waters of the Red Sea, the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, and the Gulf of Aden since mid-November last year. These attacks are in retaliation for Israel's military operations in the Gaza Strip.

The militant group has asserted that “they will not hesitate to carry out more military operations in the Red and Arab Seas,” until a ceasefire deal is reached between Israel and Hamas.

Since November, several commercial ships owned by major shipping companies, including A.P. Moller-Maersk, Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), and CMA CGM have faced missile strikes, near misses, or threats from the Houthis, with one Belize-flagged cargo vesselM/V RUBYMAR taking on water recently.

By Aparupa Mazumder 

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