LONDON, July 6. /TASS/. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Coordination Center (UKMTO) has reported an attack on a merchant ship some 51 nautical miles south of the Yemeni port city of Al Hudaydah, also known as Hodeida.
"UKMTO has received a report of an incident 51NM southwest of Al Hudaydah, Yemen. The vessel has been engaged by multiple small vessels who have opened fire with small arms and self-propelled grenades. Armed Security Team have returned fire and situation is ongoing. Authorities are investigating," it said.
Later, it said, citing a source that the shelling caused fire onboard the ship.
UKMTO warned all vessels in the vicinity of the incident "to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity."
Following the escalation of the conflict in the Gaza Strip in 2023, the Yemeni rebel movement Ansar Allah (the Houthis) warned Israel that it would shell its territory while barring ships associated with the Jewish state from passing through the waters of the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait until Tel Aviv ceased its military operation against Palestinian radical group Hamas in the embattled enclave.