UAE ship attacked

Reports from Houthi and Iranian media sources yesterday suggested that a UAE warship had been attacked by Houthi rebels off Hodeidah and badly damaged. The incident has not been confirmed by other sources or the Saudi coalition and there are no details of images of the attack.

Houthi rebels have claimed a number of vessel attacks in the past which have not been confirmed. However, they are known to have access to naval mines and anti-ship missiles, so the possibility that the incident is true can’t be immediately ruled out. There has been no comment from other naval forces in the region.

A more pressing concern is that merchant traffic is still using the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and Red Sea and could be mistakenly attacked by rebels.