Britain’s Maritime Trade Operations Agency (UKMTO) said on Sunday it had received reports of drone activity and a possible explosion in the Bab al-Mandab Strait in the Red Sea.
UKMTO said the drone activity originated in Yemen and urged nearby vessels to exercise caution.
Portal could not immediately confirm the reports.
The incident is the latest in a series of attacks in Middle Eastern waters since war broke out between Israel and the Palestinian terror group Hamas on October 7.
The Houthi actions in the Red Sea
An Israel-linked cargo ship was seized last month by the Houthi group, an ally of Iran that controls Yemen’s Red Sea coast. The group had previously fired ballistic missiles and armed drones at Israel and vowed to attack more Israeli ships. The amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD-5), a component of the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group and the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, was deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations to ensure maritime security and stability in the Middle East region, which crosses the Red Sea. (Source: US NAVAL FORCES CENTRAL COMMAND/US 5TH FLEET/HANDOUT VIA Portal)
There was no immediate comment from the Houthis on Sunday’s incident.
Last week, a U.S. Navy warship responded to a distress call from an Israeli-managed commercial tanker in the Gulf of Aden that had been hijacked by gunmen. Advertising