Current:Home > MyMissile fired from rebel-controlled Yemen misses a container ship in Bab el-Mandeb Strait -Secure Growth Solutions
Missile fired from rebel-controlled Yemen misses a container ship in Bab el-Mandeb Strait
View
Date:2025-04-13 10:08:13
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A missile fired from territory controlled by Houthi rebels in Yemen missed a container ship traveling through the crucial Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Thursday, a U.S. defense official said, the latest attack threatening shipping in the crucial maritime chokepoint.
The attack saw the missile splash harmlessly in the water near the Maersk Gibraltar, a Hong Kong-flagged container ship that had been traveling from Salalah, Oman, to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, the official said.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters. The official’s comments came after the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which monitors Mideast shipping lanes, put out an alert warning of an incident in the strait, which separates East Africa from the Arabian Peninsula.
The Maersk Gibraltar had also been hailed over the radio by “an entity claiming to be the ‘Yemeni Navy’ ahead of the missile being launched towards the vessel,” the private intelligence firm Ambrey said. “The ‘Yemeni Navy’ demanded the vessel alter course to head for Yemen. Ambrey assessed the entity to be” the Houthis.
Maersk, one of the world’s biggest shippers, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Thursday’s attack marks just the latest in the seaborne attacks attributed to the Houthis as part of their pressure campaign over the Israel-Hamas war raging in the Gaza Strip.
Two missiles fired from Houthi-held territory missed a commercial tanker loaded with Indian-manufactured jet fuel near the key Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Wednesday. Also near the strait, a missile fired by Houthi rebels on Monday night slammed into a Norwegian-flagged tanker in the Red Sea.
The Houthis have carried out a series of attacks on vessels in the Red Sea and launched drones and missiles targeting Israel. In recent days, they have threatened to attack any vessel they believe is either going to or coming from Israel, though several vessels targeted had no apparent link at all.
Global shipping has increasingly been targeted as the Israel-Hamas war threatens to become a wider regional conflict — even during a brief pause in fighting during which Hamas exchanged hostages for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. The collapse of the truce and the resumption of a punishing Israeli ground offensive and airstrikes on Gaza have raised the risk of more sea attacks.
The Bab el-Mandeb Strait is only 29 kilometers (18 miles) wide at its narrowest point, limiting traffic to two channels for inbound and outbound shipments, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Nearly 10% of all oil traded at sea passes through it. An estimated $1 trillion in goods pass through the strait annually.
In November, Houthis seized a vehicle transport ship linked to Israel in the Red Sea off Yemen. The rebels still hold the vessel near the port city of Hodeida. Separately, a container ship owned by an Israeli billionaire came under attack by a suspected Iranian drone in the Indian Ocean.
A separate, tentative cease-fire between the Houthis and a Saudi-led coalition fighting on behalf of Yemen’s exiled government has held for months despite that country’s long war. That’s raised concerns that any wider conflict in the sea — or a potential reprisal strike from Western forces — could reignite those tensions in the Arab world’s poorest nation.
veryGood! (57878)
Related
- Juan Soto to be introduced by Mets at Citi Field after striking record $765 million, 15
- Your First Look at American Ninja Warrior Season 15's Most Insane Course Ever
- U.S. Ranks Near Bottom on Energy Efficiency; Germany Tops List
- Golnesa GG Gharachedaghi Shares Why She Doesn't Hide Using Ozempic for Weight Loss
- 'Vanderpump Rules' star DJ James Kennedy arrested on domestic violence charges
- Eli Lilly says an experimental drug slows Alzheimer's worsening
- Back pain shouldn't stop you from cooking at home. Here's how to adapt
- A flash in the pan? Just weeks after launch, Instagram Threads app is already faltering
- Kylie Jenner Shows Off Sweet Notes From Nieces Dream Kardashian & Chicago West
- Biden refers to China's Xi as a dictator during fundraiser
Ranking
- Working Well: When holidays present rude customers, taking breaks and the high road preserve peace
- The Voice’s Niall Horan Wants to Give This Goodbye Gift to Blake Shelton
- Where to find back-to-school deals: Discounted shopping at Target, Walmart, Staples and more
- It Took This Coal Miner 14 Years to Secure Black Lung Benefits. How Come?
- Who are the most valuable sports franchises? Forbes releases new list of top 50 teams
- Is a 1960 treaty between Pakistan and India killing the mighty Ravi River?
- This Coastal Town Banned Tar Sands and Sparked a War with the Oil Industry
- Florida deputy gets swept away by floodwaters while rescuing driver
Recommendation
McConnell absent from Senate on Thursday as he recovers from fall in Capitol
Germany Has Built Clean Energy Economy That U.S. Rejected 30 Years Ago
At Stake in Arctic Refuge Drilling Vote: Money, Wilderness and a Way of Life
Edgy or insensitive? The Paralympics TikTok account sparks a debate
Can Bill Belichick turn North Carolina into a winner? At 72, he's chasing one last high
Candace Cameron Bure Reacts to Claims That She Lied About Not Eating Fast Food for 20 Years
10-year-old boy uses musical gift to soothe homeless dogs at Texas shelter
See Robert De Niro and Girlfriend Tiffany Chen Double Date With Sting and Wife Trudie Styler