Two Philippine crew among dead in Huthi missile attack

MANILA, Mar 07 (AFP): Two Filipino crew members were among those killed in a missile attack by Yemen's Huthi rebels on a ship in the Gulf of Aden, the Philippine government said Thursday.

The Iran-backed Huthis have been targeting merchant vessels transiting the vital Red Sea trade route for months but Wednesday's deaths were the first reported fatalities resulting from such an attack.

"The Department of Foreign Affairs expresses its sincere condolences to the families of the two Filipino crew members of the civilian bulk carrier True Confidence, which was the subject of a missile attack from Houthi rebels in Yemen," the ministry said in a statement.

The Indian Navy rescued 21 of the ship's crew, including 13 Filipinos, and brought them to Djibouti, "where three of them are in the hospital due to serious injuries", the statement added.

The Philippines' Department of Migrant Workers earlier reported four Filipino casualties of the missile attack-two dead and two injured.