UKMTO: Ship attacked in Red Sea southeast of Aden

March 8 (UPI) -- The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations reported another attack on a ship in the Gulf of Aden on Friday.

The UKMTO said it received a report that two explosions landed ahead of a vessel moving about 50 nautical miles south-southeast of Aden. The report said that both crew and the vessel were safe.

The attack comes as Iranian-backed Houthi rebels have launched frequent attacks in the area since the start of war in Gaza inOctober.

The U.S. Central Command said it destroyed missiles and drone rebels fired at U.S. military vessels on Thursday.

"CENTCOM forces shot down three UAVs launched from Iranian-back Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen toward the Gulf of Aden," CENTCOM said on Friday. "These actions are taken to protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure for U.S. Navy and merchant vessels."

On Wednesday, the first deaths occurred from the repeated Houthi attacks when the militants hit the Barbados-flagged, Liberian-owned M/VTrue Confidence at about noon local time, killing three people and injuring four.