A US defense official said attacks from areas of Yemen controlled by the Houthis hit two Liberian-flagged ships in the Bab al-Mandab Strait on Friday, highlighting the threat to ships in shipping lanes targeted by the Iran-aligned group.

The official said that a projectile believed to be a drone hit one of the two ships, Al Jasra, owned by a German company, causing a fire, but no casualties were reported. The official added that two ballistic missiles were launched in the second attack, one of which hit a ship, causing a fire that the crew was working to put out.

He added that a US Navy destroyer was on its way to assist the ship, without mentioning the name of the ship.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks.

The Yemeni Houthi movement, allied with Iran, has previously attacked ships in the Red Sea shipping lanes and launched drones and missiles towards Israel since the start of the war in the Gaza Strip more than two months ago.

The Houthi movement, which controls most of Yemen, says that the attacks are a show of support for the Palestinians and pledged to continue them until Israel stops its military campaign.

A spokesman for Hapag Lloyd, which owns the Al Jasra ship, said that the ship was attacked while sailing near the Yemeni coast. He added, "Hapag-Lloyd will take additional measures to ensure the safety of our crews." He refrained from making further statements.

There were reports of at least two other incidents in the area on Friday.

The British maritime security company Ambrey said that a container ship flying the Liberian flag, the MSC Alania, received an order from what is believed to be members of the Yemeni Houthi movement in a small boat to change its course towards Yemen.

Ambry added that the ship resorted to maneuvering.

An MSC spokesman said the ship had not been attacked and declined to comment further.

Ambry reported that a small boat with ten people on board approached MSC Alanya and announced that they were from “Yemeni authorities.”

She said that the ship had received warnings from the Houthis not to sail towards the north and quoted them as saying to the crew, “Captain, you are not allowed to continue to the Red Sea. Change your course to the southern side now.”

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In another incident, Embry reported that a Swiss-owned, Liberian-flagged container ship, the Platium 3, was targeted while sailing north about 23 miles southwest of Mocha.

An MSC spokesman declined to comment when contacted about the report.

Embry said that the Platium 3 ship, which was on its way to Saudi Arabia, received the same warning as the Alanya ship. It did not mention who targeted it.

Late on Thursday evening, the Houthis claimed responsibility for carrying out a military operation against a Maersk container ship and directly hitting it with a drone. The Danish shipping company denied the matter and said that the ship was not hit.

Tim Lenderking, the US special envoy to Yemen, told Reuters on Thursday that Washington wants to form a naval coalition “as broadly as possible” to protect ships in the Red Sea and send a signal to the Houthis that attacks will not be tolerated.

Iranian Defense Minister Mohammad Reza Ashtiani warned that the proposed multinational naval force would face “unusual problems” and that no one would be able to “move in an area we control.”