An American destroyer on Saturday shot down more than a dozen drones in the Red Sea launched from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen as two more major shipping firms suspended passage through the strait vital for global trade.

No damage to ships in the area or injuries were reported in the attack of 14 drones, all destroyed by the guided missile-armed USS Carney, according to the statement of the United States Central Command posted on X.

The operation took place as Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin headed to the Middle East, where he would meet with Bahrain on "US efforts to convene multilateral coalitions to respond to aggression at sea that threatens shipping and the global economy," a US Department of Defense statement said.

The decision Saturday of Italian-Swiss giant Mediterranean Shipping Company and France's CMA CGM to suspend sailing in the Red Sea comes a day after two of the world's largest shipping companies, Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd suspended theirs in response to a warning by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, who control much of Yemen but are not recognized internationally.

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faced protests on Saturday.

Ships belonging to Israel or heading to its ports "will remain vulnerable to targeting until the aggression stops, the siege on Gaza is lifted, and humanitarian aid continues to flow" to Gaza, Houthi spokesperson Mohammed Abdul Salam said on X.

Thousands of ships every year transit through the strategic Bab al-Mandeb strait, which runs between Yemen, on the southwestern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, and the African continent.

The tensions have added to fears that the Gaza conflict could spread.

Israel carried out fresh strikes on Gaza Sunday as its leaders came under growing pressure to secure the release of hostages still held in the Hamas-run territory more than two months after the 7 October attacks.

On Sunday, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza, at least 12 people were killed in Israeli strikes on the central city of Deir al-Balah.

Witnesses also reported Israeli air and artillery strikes on the southern municipality of Bani Suhaila east of Khan Yunis, the Gaza Strip's second city.

Thousands of ships every year transit through the strategic Bab al-Mandeb strait.

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faced protests on Saturday by relatives of hostages who called for an urgent deal to secure their freedom after the army admitted mistakenly killing three captives in Gaza.

The trio were among an estimated 250 people taken hostage during Hamas terrorists' raids into Israel, which also killed about 1,140 people, according to the Israeli authorities' latest figures.

According to Hamas, Israel's retaliatory offensive in Gaza has killed 18,800 people, mostly women and children.

Meanwhile, the Israeli army said Saturday that a soldier was killed and two others wounded on the Lebanese border.

"Sergeant Major (reservist) Yehezkel Azaria, from Petah Tikva… fell during an operational activity in the Margaliot area, aged 53 at the time of his death," the army said in a statement.

Azaria is the seventh Israeli soldier to be killed on Lebanese border since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.

Since 8 October, the day after the war started, the frontier has seen deadly exchanges of fire, mainly between the Israeli army and the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement, which says it is acting in support of Hamas.                 

WITH AFP