A vessel near Yemen has been hit from above by a missile, according to a Royal Navy agency.

UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) – which provides security information to merchant shipping – said a ship was struck near the Yemeni city of Aden.

It happened some 110 miles (177 kilometres) miles southeast of the city.

The UKMTO offered few details, other than to say the ship’s captain reported that the “port side of vessel hit from above by a missile”. It did not identify the ship or elaborate.

Yemen’s Houthi forces did not immediately acknowledge any attack, though they have fired missiles previously in that area.

The US military said one of its fighter jets shot down an anti-ship cruise missile fired by Houthi militants on Sunday, without any reported injuries or damage sustained.

On Thursday night the UK and US launched air strikes against a number of military facilities used by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, receiving non-operational support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada and the Netherlands.

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The UK government described the strikes as an act of “self defence” after branding the attacks on commercial ships as “unacceptable”.

The Houthis have repeatedly conducted assaults on vessels in the Red Sea with drones, rockets, and in some cases, helicopters have dropped militants on to the ships.

Rebels claim their actions are aimed at ending the air and ground offensive on the Gaza Strip following the 7 October attacks by Hamas.

There are growing concerns about the global economic impact of the strife in the vital shipping route, as vessels have diverted resulting in extra fuel being needed – pushing up the cost of trade and causing inflation to rise.

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