By Jana Choukeir
DUBAI (Reuters) -Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis said on Monday that a cargo ship they struck with gunfire, rockets and explosive-laden remote-controlled boats had sunk in the Red Sea, after their first known attack on the high seas this year.
The ship’s Greek operator Stem Shipping told Reuters it had no independent verification. Reuters could also not immediately verify whether the ship had sunk.
The Houthis claimed responsibility for Sunday’s assault and said they had allowed the 19 crew members to disembark from the Liberian-flagged bulk carrier, the Magic Seas.
All crew were rescued by a passing merchant vessel and were expected to arrive in Djibouti later on Monday, Stem Shipping told Reuters.
The Magic Seas was taking on water after the attack and remained at risk of sinking, the company’s representative, Michael Bodouroglou, had said earlier. The ship had been carrying iron and fertiliser from China to Turkey.
The attack ended half a year of calm in the Red Sea, one of the world’s busiest shipping routes, where Houthi attacks from the end of 2023 through late 2024 had disrupted shipping between Europe and Asia through the Suez Canal.
The Houthis launched more than 100 attacks on ships in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Bab al-Mandab Strait that links them, in what they described as solidarity with the Palestinians after war erupted in Gaza in 2023. But those attacks had halted this year, with the last known to have taken place in December.
ISRAELI STRIKES
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said in a televised statement that the vessel was targeted on Sunday after naval forces issued warnings and calls that were ignored by the ship’s crew. He said it was struck using two unmanned boats, five missiles and three drones.
According to advisories from the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations and British security firm Ambrey, which both monitor security incidents in the area, the vessel was first approached by eight small boats that opened fire and launched self-propelled grenades. Armed guards returned fire.
It was later struck by four remote-controlled boats, or Unmanned Surface Vehicles, and targeted with missiles, Ambrey said.
“Two of the USVs impacted the port side of the vessel, damaging the vessel’s cargo,” it said. UKMTO said the strikes triggered a fire onboard.
Separately, the Israeli military said on Monday it had struck three Houthi-controlled ports. There was no indication that the Israeli strikes were linked to the attack at sea.
During their campaign against shipping, Houthi attackers have sunk two vessels, seized another and killed at least four seafarers.
The campaign prompted global shipping firms to reroute vessels around the Horn of Africa, raising global shipping costs and times. The United States and its allies responded last year with air strikes.
In June, tensions in the region escalated following a 12-day war between Israel and Iran, which Washington joined with U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites. President Donald Trump had announced a halt to U.S. strikes on the Houthis, saying the group had agreed to stop interfering with key shipping routes.
(Reporting by Jana Choukeir and Ahmed Elimam; Additional reporting by Jonathan Saul;Editing by Mark Heinrich, Peter Graff and Alison Williams)
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