New attack by Houthi? Explosion off Yemen [Video]

JERUSALEM –

A ship near the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait saw an explosion in the distance Wednesday, marking what may be a new attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels through the crucial waterway for international trade.

The explosion, reported by the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre, comes after a relative lull from the Houthis after they launched dozens of attacks on shipping in the region over Israel’s ongoing war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

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The Houthis did not immediately claim responsibility for the blast, but suspicion fell on the group as they’ve repeatedly targeted ships in the same area. It typically takes the Houthis several hours before acknowledging their assaults.

The explosion happened some 130 kilometres (80 miles) southeast of Djibouti in the Gulf of Aden.

“The master of a merchant vessel reports an explosion in the water a distance from the vessel,” the UKMTO said. “Vessel and crew …