Dubai. The US said on Thursday that Iran-backed Houthi rebels fired two anti-ship cruise missiles in the Gulf of Aden and targeted a commercial ship, setting the ship on fire and seriously injuring one person. The US Central Command said that the M/V Verbena is still on fire and the person injured in the incident was taken to another nearby ship by a US helicopter for medical treatment.
The Central Command said in a statement that the Ukrainian-owned Verbena ship was flying the flag of Palau. The huge cargo ship operated by Poland had left Malaysia and was heading to Italy carrying wood. According to the statement, “M/V Verbena was damaged and caught fire. The crew is trying to control the fire.” Houthi rebels are carrying out such attacks due to the Israel-Hamas war and the attack on Thursday is part of their campaign.
The British military’s British Maritime Trade Organisation Centre said on Thursday that a ship was attacked, causing a fire on board. Private security company Embrey said a cargo ship reported that the ship was attacked with a missile.