DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A suspected attack by Yemen's Houthi rebels Friday set off explosions ahead of a vessel in the Gulf of Aden, authorities said.
No one was hurt on the ship, which continued on its way, according to the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Operations center, which watches over Middle East's waterways. The private security firm Ambrey also separately reported the attack.
The Houthis did not immediately claim responsibility for the attack. A statement from Houthi military spokesperson Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree was delayed Friday night over “urgent military developments in the theater of military operations,†according to the rebel-controlled SABA news agency. He was scheduled to speak Saturday.
Friday's explosions came after on Wednesday, killing three of its crew members and forcing survivors to abandon the vessel.
It was the first fatal strike in a campaign of assaults by the Iranian-backed group over in the Gaza Strip. The Houthis describe the attacks as trying to pressure Israel into stopping the war, but their targets increasingly have little or nothing to do with the conflict.
Other recent Houthi actions include an attack in February on a fertilizer-carrying cargo ship, the Rubymar, after drifting for several days, and the worth tens of millions of dollars.
