Missile event in Gulf of Aden, Yemen on Fri 19th July 2024

Yemen’s Houthis struck and caused damage to a Singapore-flagged container vessel with two missiles on Friday night.

The confirmation of the attack on Lobivia ship came as the group also claimed responsibility for a drone strike in Tel Aviv which killed a man and injured four.

The Houthis in recent weeks, have expanded their targets of attack and took a more aggressive stance. Last month, they hit a coal carrier named Tutor with missiles and a remote-controlled boat carrying explosives, leading to its sinking.

Tutor became the 2nd ship to be sunk by Houthis who have since November killed 3 sailors and disrupted global maritime trade by forcing ships to avoid the Suez Canal route and take the longer route around Africa.

Gerald Feierstein, director of the Arabian Peninsula Affairs Program at the Middle East Institute in Washington said that the capacity of Houthis and their access to weapons has risen over the months.

The Lobivia was sailing in the Gulf of Aden when she was hit by missiles on its port side, per the Joint Maritime Information Center report.

The vessel was 83 nm southeast of Yemen’s Aden when the attack happened. The crew members are safe and the vessel was coming back to its last port of call, per UKMTO.

It was crossing the Gulf of Aden when another vessel nearby saw a bright light and a blast, per British Security firm Ambrey.

The vessel switched off her automatic identification system an hour later. On Tuesday, Houthis targeted a Liberian-flagged oil tanker ship called Chios Lion with a drone boat, causing damage to its port side, and leaving an oily trail which reports say looked like fuel.

In a statement, Houthi Spokesperson Yahya Saree stated that operations will not halt until the war in Gaza is stopped by Israel and the siege imposed on Palestinians in the Gaza Strip is lifted.

Israel’s operations against Hamas, have resulted in the deaths of thousands of people in Gaza, including women and children.