Attack on Trump? Pentagon believes Saudi warship blast was meant for US vessel

A SUICIDE boat bombing on a Saudi warship in the Red Sea may actually have been meant for a US battleship.

کد خبر: ۶۶۲۵۷۲

تاریخ: ۱۳ بهمن ۱۳۹۵ - ۱۶:۳۰

The attack which took place off the coast of Yemen saw two Saudi sailors killed in the blast.

The incident occurred in the southern Red Sea and was carried out by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, whose media claimed the dramatic explosion was actually caused by a missile.

However, Defence Department officials from the Pentagon have told Fox News they believe it was a suicide attack which may have wrongly targeted the Saudi vessel.

In the footage a small boat rammed into the side of the Saudi vessel and caused a huge explosion, with the resulting fire killing two sailors.

American officials now fear the attackers either believed they were striking a US ship, or the bombing was a dress rehearsal for a future attack.

In the audio of the clip, a man shouting in Arabic can be heard shouting: "Allahu akbar [God is great], death to America, death to Israel, a curse on the Jews and victory for Islam".

Yemen’s Houthi militants have received support from Iran, and last year in October 2016 fired missiles at US ships when they crossed paths.

US defence officials have insisted that they are confident the American warships can defend themselves from these kinds of attacks. In 2000, al-

In 2000, al-Qaeda attacked the USS Cole while it was docked in Yemen’s Aden harbour. Seventeen American sailors were killed and dozens more injured.

After the recent attack Saudi state news agency SPA released a statement which read: "One of the boats collided with the rear of the vessel, resulting in the explosion of the boat and a fire at the rear of the ship.

"The crew extinguished the fire. Two members of the ship crew fell martyrs and three others were injured and they are in stable conditions."

America has supported a Saudi-led air campaign in the fight against the Houthi rebels in Yemen since 2015.

Yemen is seen as a proxy war between the two powers of Islam, Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shia Iran.