Tehran-backed Houthi terrorists claimed responsibility for another attack on the region’s marine transport companies on Wednesday. The incident comes after a lull in their operations in recent weeks.
The Yemen-based organization announced that they targeted the U.S.-flagged Maersk Yorktown and an unnamed American destroyer in the Gulf of Aden.
In addition, the militants stated that they fired upon the Portuguese-registered Veracruz, identified by them as an ‘Israeli’ ship, in the Indian Ocean.
Regional monitors and private security firms in the area, however, only reported that the incursion failed to strike a single “merchant vessel,” presumably the Yorktown, 80 miles southeast of Djibouti.
In mid-October, the Houthis launched a campaign of unrestricted warfare against oceangoing traffic in the area, which, as their spokespersons have said, is an act of support for Hamas’s current conflict against Israel.
Their efforts have included the deployment of combat drones and anti-ship missiles, attempted hijackings, and direct attacks against the southeastern territory of the Jewish state.
Western nations have responded to the rebel group’s actions by deploying several naval task forces to the region for the purpose of maintaining safety on the busy trade routes that run along Yemen’s coastline.
In addition to the nautical patrols, the U.S. and U.K. have been conducting airstrikes against ground targets that have been used as Houthi staging sites.
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