Yemen rebels fire missile at cargo ship in Red Sea

Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels claimed responsibility Thursday for an attack on a cargo ship traveling in a Red Sea strait through which a significant portion of the world's shipping passes, but according to a US official, the missile missed.

The Houthi rebels said the Maersk Gibraltar container ship was "targeted with a drone and the hit was direct."

Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree said the attack came after the ship's crew "refused to respond to the calls of the Yemeni naval services," and that it was intended as retaliation for the "oppression of the Palestinian people."

The Houthis have claimed a series of near-daily drone and missile assaults in the key maritime route, threatening international shipping in a pressure campaign over the Israel-Hamas war. The rebels have vowed to attack any vessel along the strait that they believe to be headed to Israel. 

A US official said the missile fired at the Maersk Gibraltar "missed the ship" and instead hit the water.

The official was speaking on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak publicly.

Later on Thursday, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said that a ballistic missile had been "fired from a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen toward the international shipping lane north of the Bab el-Mandeb," the strait between Yemen and the Horn of Africa leading to the Red Sea.

There were no injuries or damages to the Hong Kong-flagged vessel, CENTCOM said in a post on social media platform X.

"While this incident did not involve US Forces, we continue to closely monitor the situation. These attacks continue to threaten international maritime security," it added.

Danish shipping giant Maersk confirmed no one was hurt in the incident involving its ship, which was sailing from Salalah, Oman to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

"The crew and vessel is reported safe," Maersk said in a statement, adding that the company was "still working to establish the facts of the incident."

Maersk said that "the recent attacks on commercial vessels...are extremely concerning.

"The current situation puts seafarer lives at risk and is unsustainable for global trade. As it cannot be solved by the global shipping industry on its own, we call on political action to ensure a swift de-escalation."

Key route

Intelligence firm Ambrey said the Marshall Islands-owned ship was fired upon 45 nautical miles off the coast of Mocha, and also said that the crew was unharmed.

"Ambrey understands that the parent company has cooperated with an Israeli carrier but this particular vessel was not assessed to be Israeli-operated at the time of writing," the firm said in a statement.

The Houthis previously said they would target any ships traveling off the coast of Yemen bound for Israel, irrespective of ownership.

The attack occurred near Bab al-Mandeb, a key route toward the Suez Canal and Israel's southern port of Eilat.

The Maersk Gibraltar is a 340-metre (1,115-foot) container ship built in 2016, according to MarineTraffic.com.

As they did with several other vessels recently, the Houthis first ordered it to dock in a Yemeni port before firing on it when it did not comply, Ambrey said.

The Houthis, who control much of Yemen but are not recognized internationally, are part of the so-called "axis of resistance," backed by Iran and arrayed against Israel. 

On Saturday, they said they "will prevent the passage of ships heading to the Zionist entity" if food and medicine are not allowed into besieged, Hamas-ruled Gaza.

Regardless of which flag ships sail under or the nationality of their owners or operators, Israel-bound vessels "will become a legitimate target for our armed forces," the statement said.

US, French and British warships are patrolling the area and several Huthi missiles have been shot down while in flight.