Six Killed in Houthi Missile Strike on Cargo Ship in Bab el-Mandeb Strait

At least six people are dead and ten wounded after Iran-aligned Houthi rebels struck a cargo vessel in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, according to Yemen’s internationally recognized government.

What happened

Yemen’s Transport Ministry says the Houthis fired three ballistic missiles at the Egyptian-owned vessel Tihamah on Tuesday, sparking a fire and causing major damage. Among the dead were three Pakistani nationals and one Indonesian national, part of the ship’s crew.

As rescue teams moved in to evacuate the dead and wounded, the coast guard says the Houthis fired again — a second strike that killed two members of the rescue force in what Yemeni officials are calling a “double-tap” attack.

The Houthi-run Saba news agency gave a different account, claiming the group had struck a Saudi vessel carrying military equipment. It did not name the ship, and there has been no immediate Saudi confirmation.

Why it’s significant

This marks the first shipping-related deaths tied to the Houthis since the United States and Israel launched their war on Iran in late February. It signals a fresh escalation in Red Sea shipping attacks after a period of relative calm.

Bab el-Mandeb, connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, remains a critical route for Saudi Arabia’s oil exports since the Strait of Hormuz has effectively been shut down by Iran. Shipping traffic through the strait has already fallen by more than half compared with 2023–25, and dropped further after the Houthis announced a blockade last month — down to an average of 32 ships a day, from 50 previously.

Wider context

The attack came alongside a separate incident in the Gulf of Oman, where the US military says it fired on a cargo ship attempting to break its blockade of Iranian ports. The escalation follows the collapse of a years-long UN-backed truce between the Houthis and Yemen’s Saudi-backed government.