Houthi fighters march during a rally of support for the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and against the US strikes on Yemen outside Sanaa on Jan 22, 2024. (PHOTO /AP)

SANAA/UNITED NATIONS - Yemen's Houthi group said it hit an American warship on Wednesday in the Gulf of Aden and the Bab al-Mandab strait, according to a video statement from the group's spokesman.

"In support of Palestinian people and in response to American-British aggression against our country, we engaged today in a clash with several American navy destroyers and warships in the Gulf of Aden and Bab al-Mandab Strait while they were protecting two American commercial cargo vessels," Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said in the statement.

The US Central Command said on X, formerly Twitter, that the Houthis attacked a US-flagged commercial ship with anti-ship missiles around 2 pm Sanaa time

The Houthi missiles made a "direct hit" on an American warship and forced the two American commercial vessels to "retreat from entering the Red Sea," Sarea added.

The US Central Command said on X, formerly Twitter, that the Houthis attacked a US-flagged commercial ship with anti-ship missiles around 2 pm Sanaa time.

It said the USS Gravely, a guided-missile destroyer, shot down two of the missiles and the third landed in the sea. It said there were no injuries or damage to the ship, which it identified as the M/V Maersk Detroit.

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Also on Wednesday, the United Nations asked Yemen's Houthi authorities to reconsider their decision to expel US and British nationals working for the world body in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.

Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, confirmed that the United Nations has received communications from the Houthis, which gave the world body one month for all US and British nationals to leave the areas under the control of the de facto authorities.

"What needs to be said is that any request or requirement for UN staff to leave based solely on the nationality of that staff is inconsistent with the legal framework applicable to the UN," said Dujarric. "It also, of course, impedes our ability to deliver on the mandate to support all of the people in Yemen. And we call on all the authorities in Yemen to ensure that our staff can continue to perform their functions on behalf of the UN."

He said UN staff serve impartially and serve the flag of the United Nations and none other.

ALSO READ: Yemen's Houthis order UN staff from US, UK to leave in 1 month

Tensions have been rising in the Red Sea, where the Houthis say their attacks on commercial vessels are in solidarity with the Palestinians, while the US and Britain have been launching airstrikes on Houthi targets to deter them from disrupting maritime traffic.

The Houthis escalated their attacks on US warships last week, saying they would strike any US or British vessel in the area in retaliation for the airstrikes on their positions in Yemen.