Yemen's Houthis target Iran-bound cargo ship in Red Sea, say analysts

Yemen's Houthi rebels targeted a ship in the Red Sea that was bound for their ally Iran, shipping analysts have said.

The vessel, identified by the Houthis as the Star Iris, was said to be American by the group's military spokesman, Yahya Saree.

Howerver, maritime-shipping trackers said the Marshall Islands-flagged ship was Greek-owned and had been transporting a corn cargo from Brazil to Iran.

"The Star Iris, like every Iran-bound bulker, had not diverted away from the Red Sea, perhaps unafraid of attacks from Iran-backed Houthis who could be considered 'friendly' given the vessel's destination," said Ishan Bhanu, lead agricultural commodities analyst at data and analytics group Kpler.

"It was carrying corn from Brazil. At a projected 4.5 million tonnes for this year, flows from Brazil make for the majority of Iran's corn imports."

A regional security official told Reuters that the attack appeared designed to "show Iran does not control the Houthis and they act independently."

They added that the Houthis had informed Tehran in advance, though so far Iranian officials are yet to comment.