The Houthi militia have carried out a number of attacks on cargo ships in the Red Sea, including this attack on the Chios Lion. Photo: AFP
Details remained few about the attack, though it comes during the Houthis' monthslong campaign targeting ships over the ongoing Israeli war on the Gaza Strip.
The attack saw men on small boats first open fire with small arms, the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre said.
The ship also was hit by three projectiles, it added.
“The vessel reports being not under command,” the UKMTO said, likely meaning it lost all power. “No casualties reported.”
The Houthis did not immediately claim the attack, though it can take them hours or even days before they acknowledge one of their assaults.
The Houthis have targeted more than 70 vessels with missiles and drones since the Israeli war on Gaza started in October. They seized one vessel and sunk two in the campaign which also killed four sailors.
Other missiles and drones have been either intercepted by a U.S.-led coalition in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets.
The rebels maintain that they have targeted ships linked to Israel, the United States or the U.K. to force an end to Israel’s war against Gaza.
The Houthis have also launched drones and missiles toward Israel, including an attack on July 19 that killed one person and wounded 10 others in Tel Aviv. Israel responded the next day with airstrikes on the port city of Hodeida that hit fuel depots and electrical stations, killing and wounding several people.
After the strikes, the Houthis paused their attacks until Aug. 3, when they hit a Liberian-flagged container ship travelling through the Gulf of Aden. A Liberian-flagged oil tanker came under a particularly intense series of attacks, beginning Aug. 8, likely carried out by the rebels. A similar attack happened Aug. 13 as well.
As Iran threatens to retaliate against Israel over the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, the U.S. army told the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group to sail more quickly to the area. America also ordered the USS Georgia-guided missile submarine into the Mideast, while the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier strike group was in the Gulf of Oman.
Additional F-22 fighter jets have flown into the region and the USS Wasp, a large amphibious assault ship carrying F-35 fighter jets, is in the Mediterranean Sea.
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