Suspected Attack by Yemen's Houthis Targets Ship in Gulf of Aden

Houthi supporters chant slogans while brandishing weapons during a protest against the US and Israel, and in solidarity with the Palestinian people, in Sanaa, Yemen, 05 July 2024. EPA/YAHYA ARHAB
Houthi supporters chant slogans while brandishing weapons during a protest against the US and Israel, and in solidarity with the Palestinian people, in Sanaa, Yemen, 05 July 2024. EPA/YAHYA ARHAB
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Suspected Attack by Yemen's Houthis Targets Ship in Gulf of Aden

Houthi supporters chant slogans while brandishing weapons during a protest against the US and Israel, and in solidarity with the Palestinian people, in Sanaa, Yemen, 05 July 2024. EPA/YAHYA ARHAB
Houthi supporters chant slogans while brandishing weapons during a protest against the US and Israel, and in solidarity with the Palestinian people, in Sanaa, Yemen, 05 July 2024. EPA/YAHYA ARHAB

A suspected attack by Yemen's Houthi militias targeted a ship in the Gulf of Aden on Tuesday, the latest assault by the group on the crucial maritime trade route.
The captain of the ship reported an explosion in close proximity to the vessel off the coast of Nishtun, Yemen, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said. The ship, whose name and flag were not released, and all crew are safe, the UKMTO said in a warning to mariners.
The explosion took place in the farthest reaches of the waterway earlier targeted by the militias, the center said.
The Houthis have targeted more than 60 vessels by firing missiles and drones in their campaign that has killed a total of four sailors. They seized one vessel and sank two since November. US-led airstrikes have targeted the Houthis since January.



Iranian Officials: Quds Force Chief Out of Contact since Beirut Strikes

FILE PHOTO:  Brigadier General Esmail Qaani, the head of the Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force, speaks during a ceremony, in Tehran, Iran April 14, 2022. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
FILE PHOTO: Brigadier General Esmail Qaani, the head of the Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force, speaks during a ceremony, in Tehran, Iran April 14, 2022. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
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Iranian Officials: Quds Force Chief Out of Contact since Beirut Strikes

FILE PHOTO:  Brigadier General Esmail Qaani, the head of the Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force, speaks during a ceremony, in Tehran, Iran April 14, 2022. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
FILE PHOTO: Brigadier General Esmail Qaani, the head of the Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force, speaks during a ceremony, in Tehran, Iran April 14, 2022. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS

Iran's Quds Force commander Esmail Qaani, who travelled to Lebanon after the killing last month of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in an Israeli airstrike, has not been heard from since strikes on Beirut late last week, two senior Iranian security officials told Reuters.

One of the officials said Qaani was in Beirut's southern suburbs, known as the Dahiyeh, during a strike on Thursday that was reported to have targeted senior Hezbollah official Hashem Safieddine but the official said he was not meeting Safieddine.

The official said Iran and Hezbollah had not been able to contact Qaani since then.

Israel has been hitting multiple targets in Dahiyeh as it pursues a campaign against Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah.

The second official also said Qaani had travelled to Lebanon after the killing of Nasrallah and the Iranian authorities had not been able to contact him since the strike against Safieddine, who was widely expected to be the next Hezbollah chief.

Hezbollah has made no comment so far on Safieddine.
The Quds Force, the overseas arm of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, oversees dealings with militias allied with Tehran across the Middle East, such as Hezbollah.

Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander Brigadier General Abbas Nilforoushan was killed with Nasrallah in his bunker when it was hit on Sept. 27 by Israeli bombs.