Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels fired missiles at a “British ship” off the country’s coast on Thursday, but two maritime security agencies said the vessel was not hit.

The rebels carried “out a military operation targeting a British ship... while it was sailing through the Gulf of Aden,” Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said on social media Thursday, claiming the missiles had made a “direct” hit.

Earlier, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations reported “an explosion in close proximity” to a ship east of Yemen’s Aden. It said the vessel was safe and sailing to its next port of call.

Security firm Ambrey said a “bulk carrier was targeted by an explosive projectile whilst transiting” east of Aden, without mentioning its nationality.

The projectile exploded off the vessel but did not strike it, Ambrey said, adding that the attack caused only “minor damage due to shrapnel impacting a diesel generator pipe which led to a diesel leak.”

The Houthis, who control much of war-torn Yemen, have been attacking shipping since November in a campaign they say is in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza amid the Israel-Hamas war.

The Houthi attacks have prompted some shipping companies to detour around southern Africa to avoid the Red Sea, which normally carries about 12 percent of global maritime trade.

Meanwhile, the United States military said on Thursday it had “seized advanced conventional weapons and other lethal aid originating in Iran and bound to Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen from a vessel in the Arabian Sea” on 28 January.

The shipment contained more than 200 packages loaded with missile components, explosives and other devices, US Central Command said on social media.

“This is yet another example of Iran’s malign activity in the region,” CENTCOM chief Michael Erik Kurilla was quoted as saying.

“Their continued supply of advanced conventional weapons to the Houthis... continues to undermine the safety of international shipping and the free flow of commerce,” he added.

WITH AFP