The crew of a commercial ship in the Red Sea abandoned the vessel following a Houthi attack — the first such evacuation since the militant group began menacing trade in the vital waterway late last year.
Two-anti ship ballistic missiles damaged the Belize-flagged Rubymar on Sunday evening local time, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said Monday on social media platform X. A coalition warship and another merchant ship responded to the distress call, and the Rubymar’s crew were transported to a nearby port, it added.
Since November, the Houthis have escalated their attacks off the coast of Yemen with missiles and drone strikes on the merchant fleet. The Iran-backed group says they are targeting ships with links to Israel, the United States and the United Kingdom — their response to the war in the Gaza Strip and western airstrikes that have sought to quell the attacks.