US warship responds to an attack on commercial ship in Red Sea

By Haley Britzky, CNN

(CNN) — The USS Carney responded Monday to a distress call from a commercial vessel after it was attacked by “multiple projectiles” in the southern Red Sea, a US military official said.

The merchant vessel Swan Atlantic was attacked at roughly 9 a.m. Sanaa time, the official said. US Central Command said Monday night that the ship was targeted by a “one-way attack drone and an anti-ship ballistic missile launched from a Houthi-controlled area in Yemen.” The attack follows a string of others in recent days by Houthi forces, who are funded and trained by Iran, on commercial vessels in the Red Sea.

A second commercial ship in the Red Sea was targeted by Houthi militants at about the same time as the attack on the Swan Atlantic, CENTCOM said.

“The bulk cargo ship M/V CLARA reported an explosion in the water near their location. This attack is separate from the attack on the M/V SWAN ATLANTIC,” CENTCOM said. “There was no request for support or report of damage. There were no injuries reported during either incident.”

The Houthis on Monday claimed responsibility for the attacks on both ships, which they claimed were linked to Israel. The ships’ crews refused to respond to calls from the Houthis, the group said. The Houthis also said that “no harm will be dealt” to ships heading to ports around the world, “except for Israeli ports.”

The ship’s owner, Inventor Chemical Tankers, said in a release there is “no Israeli link in the ownership (Norwegian), technical management (Singapore) of the vessel, nor in any parts of the logistical chain for the cargo transported.”

“We note that information provider Marine Traffic has wrongfully claimed that the vessel is managed by an ‘Israel affiliated company’ on their web site. This is believed to be the reason for her having been targeted now on her southward passage through the Red Sea. This is incorrect,” ICT said.

The attack came as US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was in the region for meetings with senior Israeli officials in Tel Aviv amid ongoing violence between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

Austin on Monday said he would convene a meeting with other Middle East defense ministers to discuss the attacks. “I’d remind you this is not just a US issue, this is an international problem, and it deserves an international response,” he said.

Later Monday, the US defense secretary announced a multinational security initiative focusing on “security challenges in the southern Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.” Led by the US, the multinational initiative includes the United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles and Spain.

“The recent escalation in reckless Houthi attacks originating from Yemen threatens the free flow of commerce, endangers innocent mariners, and violates international law. The Red Sea is a critical waterway that has been essential to freedom of navigation and a major commercial corridor that facilitates international trade,” Austin said in a statement.

CNN previously reported that the US was considering beefing up protections for commercial ships around the vital shipping route with members of the Combined Maritime Forces.

Houthi forces in Yemen have been targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea, claiming the attacks as revenge against Israel. Oil giant BP announced Monday that it would pause all shipments through the Red Sea due to the “deteriorating security situation,” marking the latest shipping firm pausing routes through the channel.

The discussions about bolstering the task force reflect growing concern in the region over the Iran-backed Houthis’ interference in the Red Sea through which millions of barrels of oil passes daily. US officials have said publicly that discussions have centered on the possibility of escorting ships operating in the Red Sea and through the Bab-el-Mandeb strait into the Gulf of Aden — the narrow channel that separates Yemen and the Horn of Africa.

On Saturday, the USS Carney shot down 14 drones launched from “Houthi-controlled areas” of Yemen, according to US Central Command. The unmanned aircraft systems “were assessed to be one-way attack drones and were shot down with no damage to ships in the area or reported injuries,” CENTCOM posted on X on Saturday.

Last month, the USS Thomas Hudner shot down multiple one-way attack drones launched from Yemen. And in another instance, two ballistic missiles were fired from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen toward the USS Mason in the Gulf of Aden after it responded to a distress call from another commercial tanker that had come under attack by five armed individuals believed to be Somali.

The US has responded to attacks in recent months by launching strikes in eastern Syria and Iraq, targeting weapons depots and storage facilities used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its proxy militia groups.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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