First reports of a British-owned ship sailing in the Red Sea near the coast of Yemen was hit by rocket fire
Al-Arabiya Channel: The attack was against a British merchant ship in the Straits of Bab al-Mandab.
“The affected vessel was issuing distress calls relating to piracy/missile attack,” the UK-based company added.
It noted reports that “an international naval asset in the vicinity of the incident” was likely proceeding to the ship’s location.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency, run by Britain’s Royal Navy, said it had received “a report of Uncrewed Aerial Systems (UAS) activity including a potential explosion... originating from the direction of Yemen.”
It advised vessels in the area to “exercise caution.”
The reported incident comes amid heightened tensions in the Red Sea and surrounding waters after Iran-backed Houthi militants seized an Israeli-linked cargo vessel, the Galaxy Leader, last month.
Unverified reports say that American and Israeli warships countered the attack using unmanned aerial vehicles.