Containership Reports Fire After Houthi Attack

Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said on Monday the Iran-aligned group had targeted the “Israeli ship MSC SKY” in the Arabian sea.

DUBAI, March 4 (Reuters) – A fire caused by nearby explosions broke out onboard a vessel southeast of the Yemeni port city of Aden on Monday, the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency and British security firm Ambrey reported.

A first explosion was reported at a distance off the vessel’s port quarter and a second explosion caused damage to the vessel, leading to a fire which the crew are dealing with, the British maritime agencies said.

No casualties were reported.

“Coalition Forces operating in the area are investigating,” UKMTO said.

The U.S. has formed an international coalition aimed at safeguarding commercial traffic in the Red Sea region from attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi militants. The Houthis say they are carrying out the attacks in solidarity with Palestinians in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

Ambrey had reported that a container ship was struck and had issued a distress signal, saying the ship was Liberia-flagged and Israel-affiliated, en route from Singapore to Djibouti. Neither agency disclosed the vessel’s name.

“The vessel was listed as operated by the Israeli company ZIM Integrated Shipping Services. This may have been an out-of-date affiliation, as the vessel was not listed on other public sources,” Ambrey added. 

Zim Integrated Shipping Services Ltd., commonly known as ZIM, is a publicly held Israeli international cargo shipping company.

The container ship continued to transmit an AIS signal after the incident, Ambrey said.

The Rubymar cargo ship sank on Friday, becoming the first vessel lost since the Houthis began their attacks in November. 

(Reporting by Nayera Abdallah in Dubai, Adittional reporting Muhammad Al Gebaly in and Adam Makary in Cairo, Editing by Ed Osmond, Jason Neely, William Maclean)

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