Houthi leadership said on Sunday it fired 16 missiles and one drone against one unnamed US destroyer and three vessels it described as “supply ships linked to the American Army”.
If confirmed, the renewed Houthi attack shows that the Yemeni group sees no reason to halt its year-long campaign against Western shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, even after a recent ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The action would also provide further proof that the Yemeni group’s potential to carry out attacks against shipping in the area remains undiminished, despite repeated US claims to be degrading it with air strikes.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree named the three “supply” ships as the 2,500-teu boxship Maersk Saratoga (built 2004), the 49,700-dwt MR2 tanker Stena Impeccable (built 2017) and the 50,600-dwt supramax bulker Liberty Grace (built 2001).
Saree's statement says the strikes were “accurate and direct”. Past experience, however, shows that the Houthis use this terminology even when the missiles they fire fail to actually hit their targets.
No independent source has yet corroborated the specific attack the Houthis claimed responsibility for.
The United Kingdom Trade Operations (UKMTO), however, reported earlier on Sunday that one vessel it did not identify reported “an incident” at 09:32 GMT as it was sailing 80 nautical miles (92 kilometres) south of Aden.
UKMTO classified the incident as an “attack” but provided no other details about it as of late Sunday.
In another incident about two months ago, which might be similar to the one claimed by the Houthis on Sunday, the Yemeni group had said on 27 September that it launched 23 missiles and drones against three US warships in the Red Sea.
The Pentagon eventually confirmed that a “complex” Houthi attack took place against its ships but said that none of them came to harm.
Working for the Department of Defense
All three vessels named by Saree have clear links to the US and therefore match the vessel profile usually targeted by the Houthis.
All are flying the US flag and are employed by US entities.
This is the second time since March that the Houthis claim to have attacked the Maersk Saratoga, which is listed with US-registered Maersk Line. Late on Sunday, vessel trackers were showing the Maersk Saratoga at anchor in Djibouti, in the Gulf of Aden.
No signal, by contrast, is available for the Stena Impeccable — a ship whose last visible sign showed it in the Indian Ocean last month.
TradeWinds reported last year that the Stena Impeccable is among three vessels in a joint venture between Sweden’s Stena Bulk and US operator Crowley. The trio is employed by the US Maritime Administration (MarAd) under its tanker security programme, in which vessels transport fuel supplies in times of need for the Department of Defense.
The Stena Impeccable was to be manned with American crews when it entered the programme.
The third ship the Houthis claimed to have attacked on Sunday, the Liberty Grace, is listed with US-based Liberty Maritime Corp. The ship’s last signal was in the Arabian Gulf 10 days ago.
Managers at Maersk, Crowley and Liberty did not immediately respond to messages by e-mail or phone.
The renewed Houthi statement shows that the Yemeni group sees no reason to stop its campaign against western shipping after the recent ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.
“The Yemeni Armed Forces will continue to carry out their military operations at an escalating pace in the declared maritime operations zone against the Israeli and American enemy and it will not stop except by stopping the aggression and lifting the siege on the Gaza Strip,” Saree said on Sunday.
