An unsuccessful Houthi attack reported on Wednesday in the Gulf of Aden was targeting an AP Moller-Maersk US-flagged ship.
The Yemeni rebel group’s operation against the 2,500-teu Maersk Yorktown (built 2004) was thwarted by a western coalition war vessel “successfully engaging” an anti-ship ballistic missile launched from Houthi territory, US military authorities said early on Thursday.
According to information emerging later on Thursday, the coalition ship that intervened appears to have been the UK navy's HMS Diamond, which thus became the first Royal Navy ship to shoot down a missile in battle since 1991, the UK defence minister said.
In a separate statement, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree confirmed that his group targeted the Maersk Yorktown with an “accurate hit”.
Despite Saree’s claim, neither the Maersk Yorktown nor any of its 18 US and four Greek crew members suffered any damage or injury, US Central Command said.
This is the second time this month that the Houthis have tried to strike the Maersk Yorktown, a vessel that is part of the Danish shipping giant’s US-registered Maersk Line fleet.
Another attack was launched against the same vessel in the same area on 9 April.
The anti-ship ballistic missile fired then was successfully intercepted by the warship USS Laboon — again without causing any impact, injury or damage.
Saree claimed late on Wednesday that Houthi forces also targeted a second ship that was sailing far off from Yemen in the Arabian Sea part of the Indian Ocean.
“A number of drones” were launched against the 5,060-teu MSC Veracruz (built 2005), Saree said, claiming that the operation against the MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company ship “achieved [its] objectives successfully”.
However, no independent source has corroborated the Houthis’ claimed operation against the MSC vessel.
The MSC Veracruz was the target of the Houthis’ second long-distance strike, the rebels claim. Earlier in April Saree said — again without corroboration from another source — that his group attacked the MSC Grace F (built 1991) in the Indian Ocean.
This attack had sparked fears that the Houthis could act on previous threats to hit ships sailing in the open sea, far off Yemen.
The Houthis have launched 80 attacks against commercial ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since mid-November, in retaliation for Israel’s US-backed military campaign against the Palestinian Hamas group in Gaza.
In a separate incident on Thursday, Greek frigate Hydra shot down a drone while providing protection to an unidentified commercial vessel in the Gulf of Aden, EUNAVFOR said in a statement.
According to the European Union’s naval force, the projectile was posing “an imminent threat”.
In a picture accompanying the statement, the Hydra is seen escorting a geared bulker. However, it is not clear if the picture dates from today.
