Merchant Vessel Reports Explosions off Yemen

A merchant vessel reported two explosions near a ship travelling 14 nautical miles southwest of Yemen's Al Dhubab, British maritime security firm Ambrey said on Monday.

The report followed statements by the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency, which initially reported receiving information about two explosions related to an incident 25 nautical miles south of Yemen's port of Mokha.

UKMTO later reported a third explosion near the vessel, confirming that the ship and crew were safe and had continued to their next port of call.

It was not immediately clear whether the two incidents were related.

Al Dhubab and Mokha lie along Yemen's western coast near the Bab al-Mandeb strait, making them strategically significant along the Red Sea corridor.

(Reuters - Reporting by Adam Makary and Hatem Maher;Editing by Alison Williams, Helen Popper, William Maclean and Christina Fincher)