Ship slightly damaged by projectile off Yemen coast

A cargo ship in the Red Sea suffered minor damage after being hit by a projectile while sailing off the coast of Yemen's Hodeidah, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency and British maritime security firm Ambrey said on Tuesday.

The ship, located 57 nautical miles west of Hodeidah, said a projectile was fired at its port side and a small craft was seen on its port side. The projectile passed over the deck and caused slight damage to the bridge windows, the UKMTO note said after receiving the report just after midnight GMT Tuesday.

Ambrey said a Barbados-flagged, general cargo ship owned by a British company incurred physical damage from an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) while sailing south east through the Red Sea. No injuries were reported, the ship performed evasive manoeuvres and continued its journey, Ambrey said.

Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi group have been targeting commercial vessels with drones and missiles in the Red Sea since mid-November, in what they describe as acts of solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

There was no immediate comment in Houthi-run media on the projectile incident.

A ship called the Morning Tide matches the description of the cargo ship. The Morning Tide's owner, British firm Furadino Shipping, said the ship was currently sailing without problems, but gave no further information.

LSEG ship-tracking data showed the Morning Tide was sailing down through the Red Sea having come through the Suez Canal on Friday. Its most recent signal shows it sailing out of the Red Sea through the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

The Red Sea attacks have disrupted global shipping and forced firms to reroute to longer and more expensive journeys around Southern Africa, and also stoked fears that the Israel-Hamas war could spread to destabilise the wider Middle East.

A month ago, the US and Britai began striking Houthi targets in Yemen in retaliation for the months of attacks on Red Sea shipping.

The US military said its forces conducted a strike in self-defence on Monday afternoon Yemen time against two Houthi explosive uncrewed surface vehicles (USV) that it said presented an imminent threat to US Navy ships and merchant vessels in the region. 

Reuters