Last week, a British freighter encountered damage and caught fire in the Gulf of Aden, with Yemen’s Houthi insurgents being held responsible. According to statements from US Central Command and the British armed forces, the vessel was struck by a missile launched by the Houthi group. The incident resulted in one crew member sustaining injuries.
On February 22, the MV Islander, a cargo vessel weighing 16,000 tons, flying the flag of Palau but owned by a British entity, was traversing the Gulf of Aden along the southern coast of Yemen when it came under attack. Two ballistic missiles were launched from southern Yemen towards the ship. One of the missiles struck the vessel, causing a fire and injuring one crew member.
The ship was en route from Thailand to Egypt and had been sending out communications indicating the presence of Syrian crew members on board, possibly as a deterrent against potential Houthi assaults. However, this strategy proved ineffective. As of February 23, the ship was docked in the Egyptian port of Al Aladabiyah.
The Houthis, an insurgent group backed by Iran, have been carrying out attacks on ships in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea since last November. They justify these attacks as support for the Palestinians, although none of the targeted vessels were en route to Israel. The underlying motive behind these attacks is believed to be pressuring Western powers to restrain Israel’s actions against the Hamas terrorist group, which also receives support from Iran.
American and British military units have conducted multiple attacks targeting Houthi radar installations and missile launch platforms. However, these actions have not dissuaded the group from continuing to launch drones and missiles at ships. On February 23, US Central Command disclosed that US forces intercepted three Houthi attack drones near vessels in the Red Sea. Currently, four missile destroyers, three American and one British, are deployed in the area. Over the past three months, they have successfully intercepted numerous drones and missiles.
