A US-owned ship was hit by a missile off the coast of Yemen on Monday in an attack claimed by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis.
The Marshall Islands-flagged MV Gibraltar Eagle was hit by an anti-ship ballistic missile fired by the Houthis off the coast of southern Yemen, reported Centcom, the US military's headquarters for the Middle East.
“The ship has reported no injuries or significant damage and is continuing its journey,” said Centcom.
The Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack, which it said was in response to "British-American aggression" and pledged to continue attacking shipping "until the aggression stops and the siege on the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip is lifted".
"The naval forces of the Yemeni Armed Forces, with the help of God Almighty, carried out a military operation targeting an American ship in the Gulf of Aden, with a number of appropriate naval missiles, and the hit was accurate and direct," the Houthis said in a statement.
The incident was initially reported by the UK Maritime Trade Organisation, which reported it had been hit 175km south-east of Aden.
Maritime security firm Ambrey said the ship was not thought to be Israel-linked. The Houthis had previously pledged to attack Israeli-linked ships that passed through the Red Sea while Israel's war in Gaza continued.
The attack comes after days of heightened tensions following US and UK strikes against Houthi military targets in Yemen in response to the group launching months of attacks against international shipping and US warships.
The US and UK bombed more than 60 Houthi targets across 16 sites in Yemen overnight on Thursday, followed by further US strikes at the weekend.
The Houthis, who are backed by Iran and control much of northern and central Yemen including the capital Sanaa, had vowed to retaliate after the attacks and appear to not have been deterred in their campaign.
"Attacks to prevent Israeli ships or those heading to the ports of the occupied Palestine will continue," senior Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdulsalam told Reuters on Monday.
A cruise missile was fired from Houthi territory at a US destroyer on Sunday but was intercepted before reaching its target, Centcom said.
"The missile was shot down in the vicinity of the coast of Hodeidah by US fighter aircraft," said Centcom. "There were no injuries or damage reported."
Threat against shipping
The president and deputy chairman of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), which controls much of southern Yemen and is opposed to the Houthis, called for the US and its allies to do more to stop the Houthi threat against shipping.
"The US air strikes in their current form are not enough. There should be a comprehensive approach – militarily, politically and economically against the Houthis," Maj Gen Aidarus Al Zoubadi told The National at the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.
"The way to address this is for there to be a comprehensive military operation that involves regional stakeholders to stop the piracy operation in the Bab Al Mandeb and importantly to support ground forces, STC and PLC forces, on the ground."
Maj Gen Al Zoubadi was referring to the forces of the STC and the Presidential Leadership Council, which make up the administration that currently rules most of southern Yemen.
Qatar's Prime Minister said on Tuesday at the WEF in Davos that military strikes will not contain attacks by Yemen's Houthis on commercial shipping lanes in the Red Sea, but an end to the war in Gaza will.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani described the current regional situation as a "recipe for escalation everywhere" and said Qatar believes defusing the conflict in Gaza will stop conflict on other fronts.
"We need to address the central issue, which is Gaza, in order to get everything else defused ... if we are just focusing on the symptoms and not treating the real issues, [solutions] will be temporary," he said.
Earlier, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak appeared to rule out further strikes. He said attacks on Houthi bases were a “single, limited action” in self-defence and the action was designed to protect international shipping.
“They fired on our ships and our sailors. It was the biggest attack on the Royal Navy for decades and so we acted,” he said.
“It was limited, not escalatory. It was a necessary and proportionate response to a direct threat to UK vessels and therefore to the UK itself.”
The Houthis launched their campaign against international shipping in response to Israel's war in Gaza in November.
They have caused major disruption to world trade, with major shipping companies opting to avoid the Red Sea – a key international waterway – due to the risk of attacks.
A list of the animal rescue organisations in the UAE
Profile
Company name: Jaib
Started: January 2018
Co-founders: Fouad Jeryes and Sinan Taifour
Based: Jordan
Sector: FinTech
Total transactions: over $800,000 since January, 2018
Investors in Jaib's mother company Alpha Apps: Aramex and 500 Startups
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Ten10 Cricket League
Venue and schedule Sharjah Cricket Stadium, December 14 to 17
Teams
Maratha Arabians Leading player: Virender Sehwag; Top picks: Mohammed Amir, Imad Wasim; UAE players: Shaiman Anwar, Zahoor Khan
Bengal Lions Leading player: Sarfraz Ahmed; Top picks: Sunil Narine, Mustafizur Rahman; UAE players: Mohammed Naveed, Rameez Shahzad
Kerala Kings Leading player: Eoin Morgan; Top picks: Kieron Pollard, Sohail Tanvir; UAE players: Rohan Mustafa, Imran Haider
Pakhtoons Leading player: Shahid Afridi; Top picks: Fakhar Zaman, Tamim Iqbal; UAE players: Amjad Javed, Saqlain Haider
Punjabi Legends Leading player: Shoaib Malik; Top picks: Hasan Ali, Chris Jordan; UAE players: Ghulam Shabber, Shareef Asadullah
Team Sri Lanka Cricket Will be made up of Colombo players who won island’s domestic limited-overs competition
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
THE SPECS
Engine: 3.5-litre supercharged V6
Power: 416hp at 7,000rpm
Torque: 410Nm at 3,500rpm
Transmission: 6-speed manual
Fuel consumption: 10.2 l/100km
Price: Dh375,000
On sale: now
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Result
Crystal Palace 0 Manchester City 2
Man City: Jesus (39), David Silva (41)
The team
Photographer: Mateusz Stefanowski at Art Factory
Videographer: Jear Valasquez
Fashion director: Sarah Maisey
Make-up: Gulum Erzincan at Art Factory
Model: Randa at Art Factory Videographer’s assistant: Zanong Magat
Photographer’s assistant: Sophia Shlykova
With thanks to Jubail Mangrove Park, Jubail Island, Abu Dhabi
Tottenham's 10 biggest transfers (according to transfermarkt.com):
1). Moussa Sissokho - Newcastle United - £30 million (Dh143m): Flop
2). Roberto Soldado - Valencia - £25m: Flop
3). Erik Lamela - Roma - £25m: Jury still out
4). Son Heung-min - Bayer Leverkusen - £25m: Success
5). Darren Bent - Charlton Athletic - £21m: Flop
6). Vincent Janssen - AZ Alkmaar - £18m: Flop
7). David Bentley - Blackburn Rovers - £18m: Flop
8). Luka Modric - Dynamo Zagreb - £17m: Success
9). Paulinho - Corinthians - £16m: Flop
10). Mousa Dembele - Fulham - £16m: Success
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
- The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
- Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France
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