The U.S. launched a new strike against the Yemen-based Houthis on Tuesday, hitting anti-ship missiles in the third assault on the Iranian-backed group in recent days, a U.S. official said.
The strike came as the Iranian-backed Houthis claimed responsibility for a missile attack against the Malta-flagged bulk carrier Zografia in the Red Sea. No one was injured. The vessel had been heading north to the Suez Canal when it was attacked, the Greek Shipping and Island Policy Ministry said.
This latest exchange suggested there has been no let-up in Houthi attacks on shipping in the region, despite the massive U.S. and British assault on the group on Friday, bombing more than 60 targets in 28 locations using warship- and submarine-launched Tomahawk missiles and fighter jets.
The Houthis' military spokesman, Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, said in a pre-recorded statement that it fired after the ship's crew refused to answer warning calls and that the vessel was heading for a port in Israel. According to the shipping tracking website Vessel Finder, Zografia was bound for Suez, Egypt.
The Zografia, managed by a Greek firm, had no cargo onboard and sustained only material damage, the ministry said. The crew included 20 Ukrainians, three Filipinos and one Georgian. Satellite-tracking data analyzed by The Associated Press showed the Zografia still moving after the attack.
The U.S. official said no other details were available yet on the American strike against the missiles, including the precise location. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because the operation had not been made public.
The British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which monitors incidents in the Mideast's waterways, earlier acknowledged an attack in the vicinity of the Zografia.
Amid the latest attacks, U.S. Navy SEALs seized Iranian-made missile parts and other weaponry from a ship bound for Yemen's Houthi rebels in a raid last week that saw two of its commandos go missing, the U.S. military said Tuesday.
The attacks, U.S.-led retaliatory strikes and the raid all have raised tensions across the Middle East, which also saw Iran conduct ballistic missile strikes in Iraq and Syria.
The SEAL raid happened Thursday, with the commandos launching from the USS Lewis B. Puller backed by drones and helicopters, with the U.S. military's Central Command saying it took place in the Arabian Sea.
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