Houthi attacks on a commercial vessel in the Red Sea follow Israeli strikes on Yemen's ports, heightening regional tensions.

Crew members aboard a Liberian-flagged ship set ablaze by a series of attacks in the Red Sea abandoned the vessel Sunday night as it took on water, marking the first serious assault in the vital corridor for trade after a monthslong campaign by Yemen's Houthi rebels there.

The first suspected attack by Yemen’s Houthis on a commercial vessel this year forced the crew of a Greek-owned cargo ship to abandon their vessel in the Red Sea on Sunday. The attack was followed almost immediately by Israeli strikes on a number of Houthi-held ports in Yemen.