A merchant ship came under attack in the Red Sea by armed men firing guns and launching rocket-propelled grenades off the coast of Yemen. No-one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which comes as tensions remain high in the Middle East over the Israel-Hamas war.

The attacks greatly reduced shipping through the Suez Canal-Red Sea route as major container carriers elected to divert vessels away from the region and on longer voyages around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope.

The crew of a commercial vessel in the Red Sea off Yemen was forced to abandon ship after being struck by grenades and gunfire, according to a UK agency run by the British Navy.