Cargo ship damaged in fresh attack off Yemen

Crew members are being rescued after a cargo ship was damaged in an apparent attack in the Gulf of Aden off Yemen, maritime security firm Ambrey says.

It follows reports of an explosion 100km (62 miles) south-west of Aden.

Nearby vessels reported a loud bang and a large plume of smoke, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency.

Yemen's Houthi movement, which has been attacking commercial shipping in the region, have not yet commented.

The Iran-backed group says the attacks are a show of support for the Palestinians in the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Both Ambrey and the UKMTO reported that a merchant vessel had been hit and suffered damage in Wednesday's incident.

Rescue and salvage operations were under way and parts of the ship's crew had already taken to lifeboats, Ambrey said, with an Indian navy ship in the vicinity.

Shortly before the incident, the Barbados-flagged True Confidence cargo ship had been hailed by a group calling itself the "Yemeni navy" and told to change course, Ambrey said.

On Sunday, a Belize-flagged cargo ship, Rubymar, sank in the Red Sea two weeks after hit by missiles fired by Houthis. It was the first ship to have been sunk since the Houthi attacks began in November.

The Rubymar was near the Bab al-Mandab Strait, which connects the Gulf of Aden with the Red Sea, when it was attacked. The crew was rescued and the vessel began slowly taking on water.

It was carrying a cargo of 21 tonnes of ammonium nitrate fertiliser, which the US military said presented an environmental risk in the Red Sea.

US and British forces have responded to the drone and missile attacks on merchant vessels passing through the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden by targeting Houthi weapons and infrastructure in western Yemen.