Suspected Houthi attacks target a ship in Gulf of Aden and Israeli port city of Eilat
Yemen's Houthi rebels early Wednesday targeted a ship in the Gulf of Aden and the southern Israeli port city of Eilat, authorities said.
The attacks follow the departure of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower after an eight-month deployment in which the aircraft carrier led the American response to the Houthi assaults. Those attacks have reduced shipping drastically through the route crucial to Asian, Middle East and European markets in a campaign the Houthis say will continue as long as the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip rages.
The ship attack happened off the coast of Aden, the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said.
The captain «of a merchant vessel reported a missile impacted the water in close proximity to the vessel,» the UKMTO said. «The crew are reported safe and the vessel is proceeding to its next port of call.»
The UKMTO did not say if the ship had been damaged.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military early Wednesday said a drone «fell off the coast of Eilat.» The military activated air raid sirens in the area.
The drone «was monitored by (Israeli) soldiers throughout the incident and it did not cross into Israeli territory,» the Israeli military said. «During the incident, an interceptor was launched toward the» drone.
The Houthis have targeted Eilat before with drones and missiles.
The Houthis did not immediately claim either attack. However, it can take the rebels hours or even days before they acknowledge their assaults.
The rebels have targeting more than 60 specific
