A sailor was severely injured after a cargo ship within the Gulf of Aden was struck by two cruise missiles fired by the Houthis in Yemen, the US navy mentioned.
The injured sailor was airlifted to a different ship for medical remedy, the US Central Command (CentCom) reported.
It added that crew members have been combating a fireplace on board the The MV Verbena – a Palauan-flagged, Ukrainian-owned, Polish-operated ship.
The nationality of the sailor was not launched.
The incident comes a day after the Iranian-backed Houthis attacked a Greek-owned ship in the Red Sea, causing severe flooding on board.
The Houthis mentioned that they had carried out assaults on three ships throughout the previous 24 hours, together with on the MV Verbena, “in retaliation to the crimes dedicated towards our individuals within the Gaza Strip, and in response to the American-British aggression towards our nation”.
The armed Houthi group sees itself as a part of an Iranian-led “axis of resistance” towards Israel, the US and the broader West.
Since November, the insurgent group has been finishing up assaults on ships they are saying are linked to Israel within the Crimson Sea and the Gulf of Aden, saying their actions are in help of the Palestinians in Gaza.
The US and the UK have carried out a collection of assaults on Houthi targets inside Yemen in response, main the Houthis to retaliate towards ships it believes are linked to these international locations.
“The Houthis declare to be performing on behalf of Palestinians in Gaza and but they’re concentrating on and threatening the lives of third nation nationals who don’t have anything to do with the battle in Gaza,” CentCom mentioned.
The rebels’ assaults on service provider vessels within the Crimson Sea prompted many transport corporations to cease utilizing the waterway, by way of which about 12% of worldwide seaborne commerce passes.
On Wednesday, the Houthis focused a Liberian-flagged vessel named Tutor utilizing a sea drone within the Crimson Sea. No casualties have been reported.
