A cargo ship was attacked in the Red Sea, west of Yemen, on the night from Sunday to Monday. The crew had to abandon the vessel. It is the first attack there since April. Houthi rebels have attacked more than a hundred ships in total.
Eight small boats first attacked the cargo ship Magic Seas, reports maritime watchdog UKMTO. The occupants fired grenades and shot with guns at the cargo ship, which flies the Lebanese flag and is owned by a Greek company. Security guards on the ship shot back.
Shortly afterwards, the vessel was also attacked with four drones and several rockets. Two drones crashed into the side of the ship and caused a fire.
Because water entered the cargo ship, the crew had to abandon the ship. A passing cargo ship was able to rescue the crew members.
The attack has not yet been claimed. Watchdogs UKMTO and Ambrey suspect that the Houthi rebels from Yemen are behind the attack. This attack was carried out in the same way as previous attacks by the Houthis. The attack took place about 100 kilometers southwest of Hodeidah, the Yemeni port city that the rebels control.
The Houthis have attacked more than a hundred ships in the Red Sea in recent years. It could take a while before the rebels claimed those attacks. The attack on the Magic Seas is the first attack since April.
According to the Houthis, the attacks are a reaction to Israel’s violence in the war in Gaza. For that reason, the Houthis also regularly attack Israel with rockets. Israel regularly carries out counter-attacks. That also happened on Sunday. Israel attacked three ports in Yemen, after also attacking Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.
The attack on the ship comes at a sensitive moment. Israel and Hamas are said to be close to an agreement on a ceasefire.
In addition, Iran, an ally of the Houthis, is considering talks with the United States about a possible restriction of the Iranian nuclear program. Tensions between the countries had escalated a few weeks ago. The US had attacked nuclear installations in Iran during the twelve-day war between Iran and Israel.
At the beginning of May, US President Donald Trump claimed that the Houthis had stopped attacking merchant ships. In return, the Americans stopped attacking Houthi targets to protect commercial shipping.