An attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on a Liberian-flagged cargo ship in the Red Sea killed three mariners and wounded two others, a European Union naval force said Tuesday, highlighting the danger of the group's renewed campaign targeting a key maritime route for international trade.

The Israeli military says the strikes were a response to attacks by the Houthis, who later launched two missiles towards Israel and the occupied West Bank.

The Houthis resumed targeting Red Sea shipping with two attacks on commercial vessels that killed three crew members and injured two more. The Yemeni terrorist group had not targeted commercial shipping in over half a year.