By Jon Gambrell - The Associated Press
Houthi rebels in Yemen launched an anti-ship cruise missile at a U.S. destroyer in the Red Sea on Sunday, though it was shot down by a U.S. fighter jet. The incident adds to other attacks that have shaken global shipping traffic during Israel's war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, according to officials.
The attack on the Gibraltar Eagle, which was not immediately claimed by the Houthis, further aggravates tensions in the Red Sea following U.S.-led attacks on rebels. The Houthis' blows have disrupted global shipping, targeting a crucial corridor connecting energy and goods shipments from Asia and the Middle East to the Suez Canal and Europe.
The U.K.'s Office of Maritime Trade Operations, which oversees waters in the Middle East, stated that the attack occurred about 110 miles (177 kilometers) southeast of the Gulf of Aden. The ship's captain reported that the "port side of the vessel was hit from above by a missile."
Private security firms Ambrey and Dryad Global told The Associated Press that the vessel was the Eagle Gibraltar, a bulk carrier flying the flag of the Marshall Islands. The U.S. military's Central Command later acknowledged the attack and blamed the Houthis.
"The vessel has reported no injuries or significant damage and continues its journey," Central Command said. The vessel is owned by Eagle Bulk, a Stamford, Connecticut-based firm listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The company did not respond to repeated requests for comment.
Satellite tracking data analyzed by the AP showed that the Eagle Gibraltar had headed for the Suez Canal but quickly turned around at the time of the attack.
The Central Command claimed to have detected another ballistic missile launch toward the southern Red Sea on Monday, although it "failed in flight and landed on the ground in Yemen."
The U.S. Maritime Administration, under the Department of Transportation, also issued a warning Monday saying there remains "a high degree of risk to commercial vessels" traveling near Yemen.
"While the decision to transit is at the discretion of each vessel and company, it is recommended that U.S.-flagged and U.S.-owned commercial vessels" stay away from Yemen in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden "until further notice," the warning said.
The Houthis' first blow after attacks by the US and its allies
Sunday's missile launch at the U.S. warship was also the first U.S.-acknowledged firing by the Houthis since the U.S. and allied nations began attacks on the rebels on Friday after weeks of assaults on shipping in the Red Sea.
The Houthis fired in the direction of the USS Laboon, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer operating in the southern Red Sea, Central Command said. The Houthis also did not immediately acknowledge the attack.
The missile came from near Hodeida, a Red Sea port city long held by the Houthis, the United States said.
"An anti-ship cruise missile was fired from Iranian-backed Houthi militant areas in Yemen toward the USS Laboon," Central Command said. "There were no injuries or reported damage."
It was not immediately clear whether the U.S. would retaliate for the latest attacks, though President Joe Biden has said he "will not hesitate to direct further action to protect our people and the free flow of international trade as needed."
On Friday, the first day of U.S.-led strikes, it hit 28 locations and hit more than 60 targets with cruise missiles and bombs dropped by fighter jets, warships and a submarine. Among those reached are weapons depots, radars and command centers, including in remote mountainous areas, according to the United States.
The Houthis have yet to acknowledge the severity of the damage caused by the attacks, which they say killed five of their troops and wounded six others.
U.S. forces attacked a Houthi radar on Saturday.
Since November, the rebels have repeatedly attacked ships in the Red Sea, saying they were avenging Israel's offensive in Gaza against Hamas. However, they have frequently attacked ships with no clear links to Israel, endangering navigation on a key route for global trade.
Even the leader of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, obliquely referred to the expanded attacks on ships in a speech on Sunday, saying that "the sea has become a battlefield of missiles, drones and warships" and blaming the United States for the escalation of maritime tensions.
"The most dangerous thing is what the Americans did in the Red Sea, (that) will harm the safety of all maritime navigation," Nasrallah said.
Tensions rise in the Middle East
While the Biden administration and its allies have been trying for weeks to defuse tensions in the Middle East and prevent a major conflict, the attacks in the Red Sea threaten to trigger one.
[Uninformed and distraught, this is how the relatives of the two Mexican sailors held hostage in Yemen are]
It is also affecting shipping in Qatar, one of the world's leading suppliers of natural gas. Three tankers that had recently loaded in the country and were heading to the Suez Canal remain idle off Oman, while another from Europe bound for Qatar remains idle off Saudi Arabia. QatarEnergy and government officials did not respond to a request for comment.
Saudi Arabia, which supports Yemen's government-in-exile that the Houthis are fighting, sought to distance itself from attacks on Yemen sites as it tries to maintain a delicate détente with Iran and a ceasefire it maintains in Yemen. The Saudi-led, U.S.-backed war in Yemen, which began in 2015, has killed more than 150,000 people, including combatants and civilians, and created one of the world's worst humanitarian disasters, killing tens of thousands more.
The U.S. military did not specifically indicate that the fire targeted the Laboon, following a U.S. pattern since the Houthi attacks began. However, U.S. sailors have been given battle tapes for their actions in the Red Sea, something that is only given to those facing active hostilities with an enemy force.