A cargo ship attacked by Yemen’s Houthi rebels sank in the Red Sea, the group said Monday, raising new concerns over safety in a waterway that is crucial to global shipping, as Israel targeted the rebels with airstrikes.

The Houthis attacked the Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned bulk carrier Magic Seas with drones, missiles, rocket-propelled grenades and small arms fire on Sunday, forcing its crew of 22 to abandon the vessel.

The Magic Seas attack and subsequent Israeli airstrikes early Monday targeting the rebels raised fears of a renewed Houthi campaign against shipping that could again draw in US and Western forces to the area, particularly after US President Donald Trump’s administration targeted the rebels in a major airstrike campaign.

The ship attack comes at a sensitive moment in the Middle East, as a possible ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war hangs in the balance, and as Iran weighs whether to restart negotiations over its nuclear program, following American airstrikes targeting its most sensitive atomic sites during Israel’s war against the Islamic Republic.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu traveled to Washington Sunday to meet with Trump.

The attack on Magic Seas, a bulk carrier heading north to Egypt’s Suez Canal, happened about 100 kilometers (60 miles) southwest of Hodeida, Yemen, which is held by the Houthis.

The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center, or UKMTO, first said that an armed security team on the vessel had returned fire against an initial attack of gunfire and rocket-propelled grenades, though the vessel later was struck by projectiles.

Ambrey, a private maritime security firm, said that Magic Seas also had been attacked by bomb-carrying drone boats, which could be a major escalation. It said that two drone boats struck the ship, while another two were destroyed by the armed guards on board.

UKMTO said the ship was taking on water and its crew had abandoned the vessel. They were rescued by a passing ship, it added.

A European Union anti-piracy patrol in the region, called Operation Atalanta, said that 22 mariners had been on board Magic Seas.

Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, the Houthis’ military spokesman, later claimed the attack and said the rebels used missiles and bomb-carrying drone boats to attack the ship.

“Our operations continue in targeting the depths of the Israeli entity in occupied Palestine, as well as preventing Israeli maritime navigation in the Red and Arabian Seas… until the aggression on Gaza stops and the siege on it is lifted,” Saree said.

The Magic Seas owners did not respond to a request for comment. Saree later said the vessel sank in the Red Sea.

Separately, on Monday afternoon, a drone launched by the Houthis in Yemen at Israel was shot down by the Israeli Air Force, the Israel Defense Forces said.

No sirens sounded, “according to protocol,” the military added.

Hours later, a ballistic missile launched at Israel by the Houthis fell short outside the country’s borders, according to a military official.

The IDF identified the launch, but no sirens sounded in Israel because the missile did not pose a threat.

The two attacks came after the IDF overnight said it struck Houthi-held ports at Hodeida, Ras Isa, and Salif, as well as the Ras Kanatib power plant.

The IDF also said it struck Galaxy Leader, a vehicle-carrying vessel that the Houthis seized back in November 2023 when they began their attacks in the Red Sea corridor over the Israel-Hamas war.

“Houthi forces installed a radar system on the ship and have been using it to track vessels in the international maritime arena to facilitate further terrorist activities,” the IDF said.

On Monday evening, the IDF released footage showing the strike on the hijacked ship.

The Bahamas-flagged Galaxy Leader was affiliated with an Israeli billionaire and had been operated by a Japanese firm, NYK Line.

The Houthis acknowledged the strikes, but offered no damage assessment from the attack.

Saree, the Houthi spokesman, claimed the rebels’ air defense forces “effectively confronted” the Israelis, without offering evidence.

Israel has repeatedly attacked Houthi areas in Yemen, including a naval strike in June. Both Israel and the US have struck ports in the area in the past — including an American attack that killed 74 people in April — but Israel is now acting alone in attacking the rebels, as they continue to fire missiles at Israel.

Defense Minister Israel Katz threatened to launch further strikes.

“What’s true for Iran is true for Yemen,” Katz said in a statement. “Anyone who raises a hand against Israel will have it cut off. The Houthis will continue to pay a heavy price for their actions.”

The Houthis responded to the airstrikes with an overnight missile attack on Israel. The IDF said that it had made attempts to intercept the two ballistic missiles launched by the Houthis, the results of which were under investigation.

There were no reports of impacts or injuries after sirens sounded in the West Bank and along the Dead Sea.

Saree on Monday claimed to launch missiles and drones targeting Israel in its attack.

“We are fully prepared for a sustained and prolonged confrontation, to confront hostile warplanes and to counter attempts to break the naval blockade imposed by our armed forces on the enemy,” Saree said.

The Houthis — whose slogan calls for “Death to America, Death to Israel, [and] a Curse on the Jews” — began attacking Israel and maritime traffic in November 2023, a month after the October 7 Hamas massacre.

The Houthis held their fire when a ceasefire was reached between Israel and Hamas in January 2025. By that point, they had fired over 40 ballistic missiles and dozens of attack drones and cruise missiles at Israel, including one that killed a civilian and wounded several others in Tel Aviv in July 2024, prompting Israel’s first strike in Yemen.

Since March 18, 2025, when the IDF resumed its offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen have launched 58 ballistic missiles and at least 13 drones at Israel. Several of the missiles have fallen short.

The rebel group targeted more than 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two of them and killing four sailors. That greatly reduced the flow of trade through the Red Sea corridor, which typically sees $1 trillion of goods move through it annually.

Shipping through the Red Sea, while still lower than normal, has increased in recent weeks.

The group, which had said it was acting in solidarity with Palestinians, stopped firing at US ships under a May 2025 agreement, though it has continued to attack Israel directly with missiles.