The Huthis said in a statement posted on their social media that their "naval" forces had attacked the Chem Ranger "with several appropriate naval missiles, resulting in direct hits".

It did not give a time or other details for the latest attack in international shipping lanes.

Huthi aggression against vessels in the Red Sea has led to strikes in Yemen by US and British forces, with the United States reporting its latest attack on Huthi targets on Thursday.

The specialist website Marine Traffic identified the Chem Ranger as a Marshall Islands-flagged chemical tanker sailing from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to Kuwait.

British maritime risk management company Ambrey said a Marshallese chemical tanker sailing along the same route had reported a "suspicious" approach by drones.

One fell in the sea approximately 30 metres from the tanker, it added. "An Indian warship responded to the event."

"There were no crew casualties or damage reported," the monitor said.

The Huthis have launched and gradually increased attacks on Red Sea shipping since the Gaza war erupted on October 7 with the Hamas attack on Israel.

The Huthi statement said the rebels were acting against "the oppression of the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and within the response to the American-British aggression against our country".

As the United States announced its latest attack on the Huthis on Thursday, President Joe Biden said they would continue until the Iranian-backed rebels stopped targeting ships in the Red Sea.

US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters that US forces had hit "a couple of anti-ship missiles that we had reason to believe were being prepared for imminent fire into the southern Red Sea".

Several major shipping firms have halted their traffic through the Gulf because of the attacks.