Explosion Near Cargo Ship in Arabian Sea; No Damage Reported

According to the British Maritime Trade Operations organization, a commercial vessel reported an explosion near it on Monday in the Arabian Sea. The organization stated that the crew of the ship is safe and the vessel is proceeding to its next port of call. Meanwhile, the Joint Maritime Information Center of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden identified the ship as the Liberian-flagged cargo vessel 'MCS Sara V' and reported that while the ship was moving in the Arabian Sea, it was targeted by a missile attack, but the missile did not hit the vessel. The ship was moving 246 nautical miles southeast of Nashiton in Yemen. The announcement mentioned a possible reason for the attack being a form of 'its connection with Israel.' The Houthis have not made an immediate comment regarding the recent explosion. The Houthi militia, affiliated with the Islamic Republic of Iran in Yemen, has carried out various drone and missile attacks on ships in the Red Sea, Bab el-Mandeb Strait, and Gulf of Aden since November 2023. These attacks have resulted in civilian casualties and caused severe damage to commercial vessels and global trade. They claim to conduct such attacks in solidarity with Palestinians in the Israel-Gaza conflict. However, some experts say their attacks are directed by the Islamic Republic and facilitated by it. The U.S. Central Command, which is in coalition with several other countries to counter Houthi sabotage operations, emphasized that the 'malicious and reckless behavior' of the Iranian-backed Houthis continues to threaten regional stability and endangers the lives of sailors across the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. The U.S. confrontation with Iranian proxy groups in the region, especially the Houthis in Yemen, continues as the U.S. Central Command announced on Tuesday, June 18, the appointment of Admiral Keyvan Hakimzadeh as the commander of the CENTCOM strike group. It is noteworthy that after multiple Houthi attacks on various ships, the U.S. once again placed them on the list of 'global terrorists' in February 2024. The Houthi attack on a Greek ship; CENTCOM states that the damage to the ship and injuries to the crew are minor. Another attack by the Iranian-backed Houthis on a ship in the Gulf of Aden. The U.S. military and coalition forces confronted the Houthi militants; 9 drones were destroyed. The U.S. sanctioned several Houthi arms supply networks.