Container group MSC says its ship hit by missile sailing from Singapore to Djibouti
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
The United States and Britain have launched strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen and redesignated the militia as a terrorist group.
PHOTO: REUTERS
CAIRO – Container ship MSC Sky II was continuing its voyage to Djibouti on March 5 after being hit by a missile a day earlier near Yemen’s port city of Aden, its operator MSC said.
MSC Sky II was hit by a missile about 85 miles (137km) southeast of Aden and 170 miles east-southeast of the Bab al-Mandab Strait while it was sailing from Singapore to Djibouti, the Swiss-headquartered MSC said in a statement.
“The missile caused a small fire that has been extinguished while no crew were injured. She is currently continuing her journey to Djibouti and will arrive today for further assessment,” it said.
Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said Yemeni Houthi forces had attacked the Liberian-flagged MSC Sky II while it was en route to Djibouti.
“I am not aware that either Switzerland, Liberia or Djibouti have ever participated in any way in the ongoing conflict in Gaza,” he said on X.
One of two anti-ship ballistic missiles fired by Yemen's Houthis at the container vessel MSC Sky II in the Gulf of Aden hit the ship and caused "damage", the US Central Command (Centcom) said earlier on March 5.
Initial reports indicated no injuries and the Liberian-flagged, Swiss-owned container vessel did not request assistance and continued on its way, Centcom said in a statement.
A military spokesperson for the Iran-aligned Houthis said on March 4 that they targeted the vessel with "a number of suitable naval missiles". Houthis are targeting Red Sea shipping lanes in support of Palestinians in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
The US military said that Houthis also launched an anti-ship ballistic missile from Yemen into the southern Red Sea. However, it hit the water with no damage or injuries to commercial or US navy ships.
Centcom forces conducted "self-defence" strikes against two anti-ship cruise missiles that presented "an imminent threat" to merchant vessels and US Navy ships in the region, the statement added.
The attack is among the latest strikes by the Iran-aligned Houthis which have escalated since November. The Houthis have said they are targeting commercial ships in a show of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
While the militia has said it would attack vessels with links to the United Kingdom, the United States and Israel, shipping industry sources said all ships were at risk.
The United States and Britain have launched strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen and redesignated the militia as a terrorist group.
Houthis' Red Sea attacks have disrupted global shipping, forcing firms to re-route to longer and more expensive journeys around southern Africa, and stoked fears that the Israel-Hamas war could spread to destabilise the wider Middle East. REUTERS
