Turkey decries Houthi missile attack on Turkish-owned vessel in Red Sea

Iran-backed rebels in Yemen say strike on cargo ship was ‘accurate and direct’; Ankara says it’s taking measures to prevent future attacks

ISTANBUL — Turkey on Wednesday denounced a missile attack targeting a cargo ship in the Red Sea by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, saying measures were being taken to prevent any such further incidents.

“We condemn the missile attacks by the Houthis on the Panama-flagged dry cargo ship Anadolu S, owned by a Turkish company, while sailing off the coast of Yemen,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Yemen’s Houthi rebels announced Tuesday they had targeted a cargo ship in the Red Sea, while a multinational naval task force said two missiles had struck near the Panama-flagged vessel.

Since last November, the Iran-backed Houthis have been targeting shipping in and around the Red Sea in a campaign they say is in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza amid the Israel-Hamas war.

Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree said the rebels “carried out an operation targeting the ship Anadolu S in the Red Sea with a number of appropriate ballistic and naval missiles,” adding that the “hit was accurate and direct.”

The Turkish ministry did not detail in its statement whether the ship received any damage, saying only that “Necessary initiatives are being taken to prevent the recurrence of a similar incident.”

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.