DOD says US Navy, Israeli-owned ship not intended target of Houthi missiles

The U.S. Department of Defense has confirmed that a ship operated by an Israeli owner, attacked by missiles from the Houthi rebel group in Yemen on Saturday night, was not the intended target of the attack.

The department said that the targeted ship, which was located around 28 miles off Yemen’s coast, was registered in the Marshall Islands, a country that is an associate member of the United Nations.

The Israeli-owned vessel was on its way from CJF Logistic, a logistics company based in the United Arab Emirates, to Yemen’s Sanaa Port when it was hit by two ship-to-ship missiles launched from the Houthi-controlled area.

The attack inflicted some damage on the tanker, according to the U.S. Department of Defense. The U.S. Navy was sent to the area to help assess and contain the threat, and the crew of the vessel was safely transferred off the ship.

The department did not release any details on the intended target, but said that it was probably a different ship.