How risky is US-Houthi escalation after Navy thwarts tanker hijacking?
The Iran-backed rebels are risking new levels of escalation as they jockey for clout in talks with Saudi Arabia as Israel's war in the Gaza Strip grinds on.
Two ballistic missiles launched from Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen landed roughly 10 nautical miles from a US Navy destroyer after it thwarted an attempt by Somali pirates to hijack a commercial tanker ship in the Gulf of Aden on Sunday, the Pentagon said.
The USS Mason, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer attached to the USS Eisenhower carrier strike group, approached the M/V Central Park in response to a distress call from the Israeli-linked tanker in the preceeding hours before the missiles were fired.
An advance boarding team dispatched by the USS Mason pursued and detained the five attempted hijackers after they fled the tanker ship, Pentagon press secretary Pat Ryder told reporters on Monday. The attackers, who were assessed to be Somali, surrendered after the US Navy team fired warning shots near their boat, Ryder said.
The Liberian-flagged tanker, which had been hauling phosphoric acid, was identified as the M/V Central Park by the vessel’s company. The ship is managed by Zodiac Maritime Ltd, a London-headquartered international ship management firm owned by Israel’s Ofer family.
