Yemen’s Houthis said they attacked the container ship MSC Orion and a Cyclades vessel with a drone as part of their campaign against international shipping in solidarity with Palestinians opposed to Israeli military action in the Gaza Strip, Arab media reported.
The Portuguese-flagged MSC Orion was travelling between the ports of Sines, Portugal, and Salalah, Oman, and its registered owner is Zodiac Maritime, according to LSEG.
Zodiac is partly owned by Israeli businessman Eyal Ofer. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Houthis have fired drones and missiles into the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden almost daily following a nine-day break. Houthi activity slowed on April 16 but picked up again with an April 24 attack on Maersk Yorktown.
Iranian Houthi militants have repeatedly launched drone and missile strikes in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandab Strait and Gulf of Aden since November, forcing shippers to divert cargo to longer and more expensive routes across southern Africa and fuelling fears that the war between Israel and Hamas could spread across the Middle East.
In March, the group’s leader said it was expanding its area of attack to prevent Israel-linked ships from travelling across the Indian Ocean to the Cape of Good Hope.
The Iran-linked group also attacked the commercial ship Cyclades and two US destroyers in the Red Sea, its spokesman said in a televised statement early Tuesday.
Earlier, Ambrey, a British maritime security company, said a Malta-flagged container ship was hit by three missiles on Monday on its way from Djibouti to the Saudi city of Jeddah. The Houthis said the Cyclades vessel was on that route when they attacked the vessel.
Ambrey believes the ship was hit because its listed operator trades with Israel, the advisory said. The US and Britain have struck Houthi targets in retaliation for their attacks on the vessels.
