The heavy-lift vessel Ocean Jazz arrives at the port of Gladstone, Australia, while on charter to MSC, June 26, 2017. U.S. Navy Photo
The Houthi rebel group in Yemen has claimed a missile attack targeting the “American military cargo ship” M/V Ocean Jazz in the Gulf of Aden. The U.S.-flag ship has a history of carrying U.S. military cargoes.
The U.S. Navy denied Houthi reports of the successful attack and said it is in constant communication with the vessel.
The heavy-lift Ocean Jazz is operated by US Ocean LLC, which provides global transportation and logistics solutions for U.S. military, humanitarian aid, breakbulk, and project cargoes.
A Houthi spokesman wrote on “X” that the ship was targeted with “appropriate naval missiles,” but he did not indicate whether the ship had been hit or not.
The U.S. Navy’s 5th fleet called claims of the successful attack “patently false.”
”NAVCENT has maintained constant communications with M/V Ocean Jazz throughout its safe transit,” the 5th fleet stated.
AIS data shows the Ocean Jazz arrived in the Red Sea on January 18 after transiting the Suez Canal.
The Ocean Jazz has previously been chartered by the U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command. MSC operates non-combatant, civilian-crewed vessels providing ocean transportation services to the U.S. Department of Defense.
Claims of the attack come after the Houthis have threatened U.S. and British ships and naval vessels in response to military strikes in Yemen.
Meanwhile, a joint statement from the U.S. and UK on Monday confirmed additional military strikes on 8 Houthi targets in Yemen, marking the latest round of strikes by the U.S. and the second joint strikes by the two countries. The strikes specifically targeted a Houthi underground storage site and locations associated with the Houthis’ missile and air surveillance capabilities.
The Iranian-backed Houthi rebels have carried out more than 30 attacks on international shipping from Yemen in support of Hamas in the war with Israel since November.
Equasis data shows the ship is managed by Seabulk Fleet Management.
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