<div style="text-align: justify; "><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; "><b>A merchant ship reported being hit by a projectile while off Yemen's coast en route to Saudi Arabia on Thursday, a British maritime security agency said.</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"A merchant vessel reported having been 'hit' by a projectile" west of Yemen's port city of Hodeida, Ambrey said, adding that there were no immediate reports of injuries or damage.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"The vessel was transiting south along the Red Sea when she issued a distress call," Ambrey said. The ship was heading to the Saudi port city of Dammam.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">There was no immediate claim of responsibility but Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels have targeted dozens of ships since November in a campaign they say is intended to signal solidarity with Palestinians during the Gaza war.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Earlier this week a missile hit in "close proximity" to a vessel transiting south of the Yemeni port city of Aden, said the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The ship proceeded on its journey with no reports of injuries or damage, said the maritime agency run by Britain's Royal Navy.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Joint Maritime Information Center identified the vessel as the Saint Kitts- and Nevis-flagged bulk carrier Lila Lisbon.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"The vessel was not hit and all crew on board are safe," said the agency overseen by the US Navy.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The United States in December announced a maritime security initiative to protect Red Sea shipping from Huthi attacks, which have forced commercial vessels to divert from the route that normally carries 12 percent of global trade.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Since January the United States and Britain have also launched repeated strikes on Huthi targets in Yemen in response to the ship attacks.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">On Thursday, US military forces destroyed one Huthi radar site in a rebel-run part of Yemen, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on social media platform X. AFP</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>