The USS Mason was targeted by the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels from Yemen just north of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Houthi rebels fired two missiles, which failed to make contact with the ship. The US Navy stated that no sailors were injured in the attack. Reportedly, the Houthi-controlled SABA news agency of Yemen quoted an anonymous army official denying its forces fired on the USS Mason.

The failed missile attack comes within a week of the UAE auxiliary ship HSV-2 Swift being damaged in a similar type of attack.  The USS Mason, USS Nitze, and USS Ponce were sent to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait following the attack on the UAE ship.

The failed missile attack on the USS Mason began around 7 p.m. local time, when the ship detected two inbound missiles over a 60-minute period in the Red Sea off Yemen’s coast,” the U.S. military said.

“Both missiles impacted the water before reaching the ship,” Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis said. “There were no injuries to our sailors and no damage to the ship.”