WASHINGTON • A US Navy guided missile destroyer was targeted in a failed missile attack from territory in Yemen controlled by Iran- aligned Houthi rebels, a US military spokesman has said, but the Houthis have denied launching the attack.

"USS Mason detected two inbound missiles over a 60-minute period while in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen. Both missiles impacted the water before reaching the ship," Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis said.

"There were no injuries to our sailors and no damage to the ship."

The failed attack on the USS Mason began around 7pm local time on Sunday when the ship detected two inbound missiles, the US military said.

"We assess these missiles were launched from Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen," US Naval Forces Central Command spokesman Paula Dunn said, referring to the rebels fighting Yemen's internationally recognised government.

But the Houthi movement yesterday denied that its forces had carried out the attack.

"(The Houthi movement) denies targeting any ship off Yemeni waters," an official from the movement told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.

REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE