Yemeni fighters fire missiles at US Navy destroyer

A U.S. Navy destroyer has been targeted by missiles fired from Yemen on Sunday, according to reports.

Two missiles were fired and both missed, impacting water before reaching the U.S. Navy ship.

Another missile targeted a Saudi air base causing no damage, Al Jazeera reported citing Saudi and rebel media.

USS Mason, the targeted destroyer, was sent to the region last week together with two more U.S. Navy ships after Yemen’s Houthi fighters hit UAE Navy vessel HSV Swift with an anti-ship missile in the Bab al-Mandab strait off Yemen’s coast. HSV Swift suffered major damage but did not sink.

A defense official said the missiles triggered Mason’s defense mechanisms but also added that it was unclear whether this contributed to the missiles hitting the water instead of Mason.

Mason did not return fire, Reuters reported a defense official saying. It was noted that the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer was in international waters at the time of the attack.

The attack comes after an air strike that killed at least 140 and wounded more than 500 in the Yemen capital Sanaa, during a funeral ceremony on Saturday.

So far, the Yemen war has claimed the lives of an estimated 10,000 people since it began in March 2015.