Houthis Fire Ballistic Missile Hitting American Ship

On Monday, at roughly 8 a.m. Eastern Time, Iranian-backed Houthi militants fired an anti-ship ballistic missile from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, hitting a U.S.-owned and operated container ship off the coast of Yemen.

The missile hit the M/V Gibraltar Eagle, a Marshall Islands-flagged ship, U.S. Central Command reported.

On Jan. 15 at approximately 4 p.m. (Sanaa time), Iranian-backed Houthi militants fired an anti-ship ballistic missile from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen and struck the M/V Gibraltar Eagle, a Marshall Islands-flagged, U.S.-owned and operated container ship. The ship has… pic.twitter.com/gixEMaUiVT

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) January 15, 2024

British Maritime Security firm Ambrey stated that three missiles were reportedly launched by the Houthis; two did not reach the ship. Ambrey also noted that the missile hitting the ship reportedly caused a fire in a hold, Reuters reported.

The “port side of vessel [was] hit from above by a missile,” according to the ship’s captain, a report from the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) stated, The Daily Mail reported. “Vessels are advised to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity to UKMTO,” the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which confirmed the attack, reported.

The vessel’s US operator, Eagle Bulk Shipping, released a statement saying, “As a result of the impact, the vessel suffered limited damage to a cargo hold but is stable and is heading out of the area. All seafarers onboard the vessel are confirmed to be uninjured. The vessel is carrying a cargo of steel products.”

#Breaking: The Eagle Gibraltar, owned by Eagle Bulk in Connecticut, (not Israeli owned) was hit by a Houthi-fired missile off Yemen's coast, causing a fire onboard but no casualties. pic.twitter.com/WrxlH82Gx7

— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) January 15, 2024

 “This is the 30th attack on commercial vessels by the Houthis since November 19^th,” Fox News pointed out.

On Sunday, U.S. fighter aircraft shot down an anti-ship cruise missile fired by the  Houthis — who took over Yemen’s capital city, Sanaa, in 2014 — toward the USS Laboon in the southern part of the Red Sea. The missile was reportedly fired from an area near Hodeida, a Red Sea port city.