British military officials are reporting that a cargo ship came under attack Sunday in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen, marking the latest in a series of maritime incidents near the conflict-riddled country.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said the attack occurred near the coastal city of Hodeida, an area currently under the control of Iranian-backed Houthi rebels.
According to the UKMTO, the vessel reported being “under attack by unknown armed assailants” approximately 30 nautical miles — or about 55 kilometers — southwest of Hodeida. Authorities said they are actively investigating the incident.
As of Sunday, no group had stepped forward to claim responsibility for the attack, and a Houthi spokesman did not immediately respond when contacted for comment.
The Houthis have previously threatened to resume attacking ships in the area, though they had not been actively carrying out such attacks in recent weeks. In the past, the rebel group launched drones and missiles at vessels passing near the narrow Bab al-Mandab Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea. Those earlier attacks during the Gaza war compelled many shipping companies to redirect their vessels around the southern tip of Africa rather than using the Suez Canal route at the Red Sea’s northern end.
Meanwhile, Somali pirates have also been increasingly active in the nearby Gulf of Aden. On July 1, suspected pirates struck a vessel 76 nautical miles — roughly 140 kilometers — south of the port town of Balhaf in southeastern Yemen. The UKMTO reported that four armed men aboard a small craft boarded the ship and caused minor damage to the vessel’s bridge.
