A Greek military vessel serving in the European Union’s naval mission in the Red Sea intercepted two drones launched by Yemen’s Houthi militants towards a commercial ship, officials at the Greek Defence Ministry said on Thursday.

“On Thursday morning Greek frigate Hydra, while it was escorting a merchant ship in the Gulf of Aden, fired at two drones,” an official told Reuters.

“It destroyed one while the second moved away,” he added. Another defence official confirmed the details of the incident.

Greece has supplied a frigate to the EU’s mission, dubbed Aspides, that launched in February to help protect the key maritime trade route from drone and missile attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi militia, who say they are targeting commercial ships in retaliation for Israel’s war on Gaza.

Source: Reuters reporting by Lefteris Papadimas and edited by Miral Fahmy