Ten people were rescued after a ship was attacked in the Red Sea by the Houthis from Yemen, while three others were killed and twelve remain missing, according to the European mission Aspides.
This attack, one of the deadliest carried out by the Yemeni group against the merchant navy, marks an escalation in this maritime zone essential for global trade, threatening a ceasefire agreed in May with the United States aimed at preserving freedom of navigation.
After several months of calm, the Houthis attacked the ship Magic Seas on Sunday, whose crew was evacuated by the Emirati navy, then the Eternity C on Monday and Tuesday, sinking both vessels.
Three Filipino crew members and one Greek security team member aboard the Eternity C were recovered at sea during the night, “bringing the total number of people rescued to 10,” the European Union naval mission stated Thursday on X.
In total, 25 people were aboard this Liberian-flagged bulk carrier.
On Tuesday, Aspides told AFP that three people were killed and at least two wounded, including a Russian electrician who lost a leg, during the attack carried out by the Yemeni group.
The fate of the other crew members remains uncertain.
On Wednesday, the Houthis claimed to have “rescued” an undetermined number of people aboard the ship and taken them to a “safe place.” The US Embassy in Yemen accused them of kidnapping the survivors.
The insurgents, supported by Iran, also released a video showing a powerful explosion on the cargo’s deck, which subsequently sank.
“Deep Concern”
Since the end of 2023, the Houthis have attacked dozens of ships they consider linked to Israel, claiming to act in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, who have been under Israeli bombardment since the start of the war on October 7, 2023.
These attacks have forced many shipowners to avoid the Red Sea, through which 12% of global trade passes, according to the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS).
The Yemeni group, which controls the capital Sanaa and large parts of Yemen, at war since 2014, had suspended its maritime attacks earlier this year after a ceasefire in Gaza concluded in January but ended two months later.
In May, it warned it would continue targeting Israeli or Israel-linked ships, despite a truce with the United States that ended weeks of American bombings of the Yemeni group’s targets in Yemen.
The Magic Seas and Eternity C were likely attacked “due to previous visits to Israeli ports or links between their owners or managers and other vessels that frequented Israel,” according to the Joint Maritime Information Center, managed by a Western naval coalition.
The UN envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, expressed his “deep concern,” deploring “civilian casualties, injuries, as well as a potential risk of environmental damage.”
The attack on the Eternity C is the deadliest since the missile attack on the merchant ship True Confidence in March last year, which killed three people.
The Houthis also captured the Galaxy Leader in November 2023 and sank the Rubymar, which was carrying 21,000 tons of fertilizer, in February 2024.
AFP
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