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In the Gulf of Aden, the US warship USS Mason responds to a distress call from a commercial tanker with ties to Israel.
Five assailants who took possession of an Israel-related cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden during missile assaults from the Houthi-controlled Yemen have been apprehended by the US military.
US Central Command said that the destroyer USS Mason reacted on Sunday to an SOS call from a commercial tanker that had been overtaken by armed attackers in the Gulf.
The Central Park, a tanker carrying phosphoric acid and flying the Liberian flag, was recognized by the ship’s operator. The ship is operated by the Israeli Ofer family-owned worldwide ship management company Zodiac Maritime Ltd., which has its headquarters in London.
According to the US Navy, the USS Mason asked that the assailants release the commercial ship with assistance from other ships.
Five armed people then got off the ship and tried to escape in their tiny boat, according to a statement from US Central Command. “The attackers were eventually forced to surrender because the Mason pursued them.”
Two ballistic missiles were fired from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen against the Mason and Central Park, the statement said, but they fell around 10 nautical miles distant from the warships with no damage or casualties.The incident was attributed by Yemen’s government in Aden to the Houthi rebels, who are supported by Iran. But neither the takeover nor the missile strike were acknowledged by the rebels, who now hold control of Sanaa, the nation’s capital.
Issues at sea
Since the Gaza War began on October 7, there have been several strikes in Middle Eastern waterways. This event is the most recent in that sequence.
It came after Houthi militants last week seized a cargo ship connected to Israel in the southern Red Sea.
The Houthis have threatened to strike additional Israeli boats. They have already fired ballistic missiles and armed drones at Israel.
Central Park was allegedly involved in a pirate incident while traversing international seas, around 54 nautical miles off the coast of Somalia, according to a statement released by Zodiac Maritime.
The security of our 22 crew members is our first priority. The statement said, “The Turkish-captained yacht has a multicultural crew made up of Russian, Vietnamese, Bulgarian, Indian, Georgian, and Filipino nationalities.
“The coalition forces who responded quickly, protecting assets in the area and upholding international maritime law” was another thing for which Zodiac Maritime expressed gratitude.
The UKMTO, the British agency in charge of maritime trade operations, sent a warning to other boats on Sunday, stating that it was aware of a potential attack near southwest Aden.
For unreported assaults on many boats in the area over the last few years, the US has held Iran accountable. Tehran has refuted any connection.
A US defense source claimed on Saturday that a suspected Iranian drone struck a cargo ship operated by an Israeli-controlled corporation in the Indian Ocean, inflicting minor damage to the ship but no casualties.
source:-aljazeera
