Yemen’s Houthi Rebels damaged and destroyed a container ship flying the Singapore flag with two missiles Friday as they intensified their attacks against global shipping in response to Israel’s Gaza War.
The Houthis, who are aligned with Iran, also claimed responsibility for an aerial drone attack in the middle of the country that was fierce and long-ranged.
The incident resulted in the death of one man and four other injuries.
In recent weeks, the Houthis have become better at inflicting injuries.
Damage To Their Targets
The militants sank the Greek-owned Tutor coal ship in June with explosives-laden remote-controlled boats and missiles.
Tutor is the second vessel to be sunk as part of the Houthi’s campaign against commercial shipping. Since November, the Houthi has claimed at least three lives and disrupted global trade, forcing shipowners to avoid using the Suez Canal for trade.
Gerald Feierstein is the director of the Middle East Institute’s Arabian Peninsula Affairs Program in Washington.
In a Friday television address, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said that the group had launched the Lobivia attacks. He added that drones were also used in the attack. Lobivia’s manager did not comment immediately.
Joint Maritime Information Center JMIC reported that the missiles hit two areas of the port side of Lobivia when they were in the Gulf of Aden.
The attack occurred when the ship was 83 nautical miles southeast of Aden, Yemen’s largest port. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said that all crew members were safe, and the ship was returning back to its last port.
Ambrey, a British security company, said that the ship had been transiting along the Gulf of Aden in the northeast when a nearby merchant vessel observed “light and blast” where the ship was.
Ambrey reported that the ship performed evasive maneuvers almost immediately and switched off its automatic identification system about an hour later.
The Houthis used a drone boat to hit the Liberia flagged oil tanker Chios Lion on Tuesday. This caused damage to the portside, leaving an oily trail, which experts believed to be fuel.
Since February, Britain and the U.S. conducted retaliatory attacks in Yemen. They shot down drones and bombarded attack sites.
This has cost a lot, said Feierstein. He was the U.S. From 2010 to 2013, President Barack Obama was the ambassador to the Republic of Yemen.
“We spend a million bucks every time we take out a Radio Shack Drone.” He said that the Navy was wearing down and our supplies were also being worn out.
Reporting by Hatem Mahar in Cairo, Clauda Tanos, Ahmed Elimam Nayera Awadalla, Nayera Awadallah and Lisa Baertlein, in Dubai; editing by Christian Schmollinger and Christopher Cushing.
Source: Marine Link
