DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A Liberian-flagged tanker was attacked in the narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait in an attack suspected to be carried out by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Wednesday, authorities confirmed, marking the rebels’ longest-range attack yet on a U.S.-flagged ship near the Arabian Sea.
The attack came after a week-and-a-half long unexplained hiatus, when rebel forces may be regrouping before the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower begins its return and a new US aircraft carrier arrives in the region.
The U.S. Navy’s Joint Maritime Intelligence Center identified the Liberian-flagged ship as the Mount Fuji. The British military’s UK Maritime Trade Operations Centre said the attack happened south of Mocha and the captain reported an explosion on the side of the vessel.
UKMTO said: “The ship and all crew are safe. The ship is en route to its next port of call.”
The Houthis have been attacking shipping in the busy Red Sea corridor since November, when Israel and Hamas began their war in the Gaza Strip. The rebels had not claimed responsibility for the latest attack as of early Thursday, but they often do not do so for hours or even days.
The Houthis said on Tuesday they had fired a missile at a US-flagged container ship in the Gulf of Aden. JMIC identified the vessel as the Maersk Sentosa and said it was the longest-range attack launched by the Houthis from Yemen since November last year.
Late Tuesday, the Houthis claimed broad responsibility for three attacks, including on the Maersk Sentosa. Danish company Maersk, the world’s largest shipping company, confirmed to The Associated Press that one of its ships had been targeted.
“No injuries to crew or damage to the vessel or cargo have been reported,” the shipping company said in a statement. “The vessel is currently continuing its voyage to its next port of call.”
Rebels have attacked more than 70 ships using missiles and drones, killing four sailors. One ship was seized and 2 ships sunk Starting in November.
The number of Houthi attacks on merchant ships rose in June to levels not seen since December, according to the JMIC. U.S.-led airstrikes have been targeting the Houthis since January. May 30th strike series The rebels said at least 16 people were killed and 42 were wounded.
The Houthis say they are targeting ships linked to Israel, the US and Britain as part of their support for the militant group Hamas in the war against Israel, but many of the ships they have attacked have little or no connection to the war, including some bound for Iran, which supports the Houthis.
Few of the Houthi attacks have targeted U.S.-flagged merchant ships.
The U.S. aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt is due to enter the Middle East region to replace the Eisenhower, which spent several months in the Red Sea countering the Houthis. The Navy has not released any new details about the Roosevelt’s location, but images released by the Navy on Friday showed the carrier in the South China Sea.
Meanwhile, US Central Command said on Wednesday its forces destroyed two Houthi unmanned aerial vehicles and one unmanned surface vehicle over the Red Sea.
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Associated Press writer Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.
