Suspected Yemen Houthi rebel attack hits ship, causing ‘fatalities’

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES >> A suspected attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on a ship in the Gulf of Aden caused “fatalities” Wednesday, two U.S. officials have told The Associated Press.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they didn’t have authorization to speak publicly about the killings on board the True Confidence.

The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center added that the Barbados-flagged vessel was no longer under the command of the crew and that they had abandoned it.

The exact extent of the damage remained unclear. However, it appeared to be serious.

Yemen’s Houthi rebels didn’t immediately claim the attack, though it typically takes them several hours to acknowledge their assaults. They’ve been attacking ships sailing past Yemen since November over Israel’s ongoing war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The United States has put Yemen’s Houthis rebels back on its list of specially designated global terrorists. Hamas has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, Canada and the European Union.

The attack came as a U.S. destroyer separately shot down drones and a missile launched by the Houthis.

Meanwhile, Iran announced Wednesday that it would confiscate a $50 million cargo of Kuwaiti crude oil for American energy firm Chevron Corp. aboard a tanker it seized nearly a year earlier. It marks the latest twist in a yearslong shadow war playing out in the Middle East’s waterways even before the Houthi attacks began.

The True Confidence earlier had been hailed over radio by individuals claiming to be the Yemeni military, officials said. The Houthis have been hailing ships over the radio in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since launching their attacks, with analysts suspecting the rebels want to seize the vessels.

The crew fled the ship and deployed lifeboats — signaling a serious incident, said a U.S. defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters.

A U.S. warship and the Indian navy were on the scene, trying to assist in rescue efforts, the official said.