DUBAI: As part of their continuous assault against international commerce in support of Palestinians opposing Israel’s military actions in Gaza, Yemen’s Houthis claimed to have launched a drone attack against the MSC Orion container ship in the Indian Ocean.

Portugal-registered Zodiac Maritime is the registered owner of MSC Orion, which was sailing between the ports of Sines, Portugal, and Salalah, Oman, according to LSEG data.

Eyal Ofer, an Israeli businessman, owns a portion of Zodiac. A request for comment was not immediately answered by the corporation.

Since November, Houthi militants aligned with Iran have repeatedly launched drone and missile strikes in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandab Strait, and Gulf of Aden. This has forced shippers to reroute cargo on longer and more expensive journeys around Southern Africa, feeding concerns that the war between Israel and Hamas could escalate and destabilise the Middle East.

The leader of the organisation stated in March that the group was enlarging its strike zone in order to stop ships connected to Israel from sailing through the Indian Ocean and towards the Cape of Good Hope.

In a videotaped speech early on Tuesday, the Iran-affiliated organisation alleged that it had also targeted two US destroyers in the Red Sea in addition to the Cyclades commercial tanker.

A container ship flying the flag of Malta claimed to have been hit by three missiles on Monday while travelling from Djibouti to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, according to a report earlier this week from the British maritime security company Ambrey. The Cyclades, according to the Houthis, was travelling that path when they struck the ship.

In an advisory note, Ambrey determined that the ship was targeted because of its listed operator’s continued trading with Israel.

Following the Houthi attacks on warships, the United States and Britain retaliated with strikes against Houthi sites.