An Israeli ship in the Indian Ocean was reportedly attacked by Iran or with Iranian weapons. The US had information that “a Shahed-136 drone hit a ship in the Indian Ocean”, it said today.
The ship, which reportedly belonged to an Israeli businessman, was slightly damaged. However, there were no injuries on board. Shahed-136 drones are part of the arsenal of the Iranian armed forces.
Threats after October 7th
According to maritime security company Ambrey, the attacked vessel is a “Maltese-flagged container ship” and is operated by a French company. Before the attack, transmissions to locate the ship were interrupted shortly after it left the port of Jabal Ali in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The alleged attack followed threats from the pro-Iranian Houthi militia in Yemen to attack Israeli ships and ships of Israel’s allies operating in the Red Sea. The Houthi militia sees itself as part of the self-proclaimed “Axis of Resistance” directed against Israel. This also includes other Iranian-backed groups, such as the Palestinian radical Islamic organization Hamas and the Shiite Islamic militia Hezbollah in Lebanon.