Dubai (AFP) – Yemen’s Iran-backed Huthi rebels claimed responsibility Wednesday for the deadly sinking of a merchant vessel earlier this week, their second attack in 24 hours as they resumed their campaign against Red Sea shipping. The Eternity C, a Liberian-flagged bulk carrier, was badly damaged in the attack that started on Monday and continued into Tuesday, when the ship sank.
Yemen’s rebels claimed responsibility for the attack, which came a day after they boarded and sank the Magic Seas — their first attack on merchant shipping this year. Their resumed attacks mark the end of a months-long lull and threaten a May ceasefire with the United States that ended weeks of strikes on Huthi targets. “The naval force of the Yemeni Armed Forces targeted the ship Eternity C,” Huthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said, claiming that the vessel was headed for the Israeli port of Eilat and was attacked in support of Palestinians in Gaza.
Saree said the attack was carried out with an unmanned vessel and six cruise and ballistic missiles. He said the Huthis had “moved to rescue a number of the ship’s crew, provide them with medical care and transport them to a safe location.” However, the US embassy accused the rebels of kidnapping those crew members who had not been rescued by Western navies. “After killing their shipmates, sinking their ship and hampering rescue efforts, the Huthi terrorists have kidnapped many surviving crew members of the Eternity C,” said the mission, which operates out of a temporary base in neighbouring Saudi Arabia. “We call for their immediate and unconditional safe release,” it added in a post on X.
Operation Aspides – the EU naval task force in the Red Sea – told AFP that five Filipinos and one Indian had been rescued, while 19 others were still missing. The UN envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, expressed “grave concern” over attacks that resulted in “civilian loss of life and casualties as well as the potential for environmental damage.” “Yemen must not be drawn deeper into regional crises that threaten to unravel the already extremely fragile situation in the country,” he said. On Tuesday, Aspides said three people were killed in the attack on the Eternity C and at least two wounded – including a Russian electrician who lost a leg.
Saree warned “all companies dealing with the ports of occupied Palestine (Israel) that their ships and crews will be targeted” until Israel has been forced to “lift the siege on our brothers in Gaza, cease the aggression against them and end the ongoing war.” The Huthis began their attacks on Red Sea shipping in late 2023, saying they were in support of Palestinians in Gaza. On Monday, they said they hit the Magic Seas because its owner had done business with Israel and used its ports.
The rebels released a video showing masked gunmen storming the Magic Seas and simultaneous explosions that scuttled the bulk carrier. Both ships had likely been attacked “due to prior Israeli port calls or ownership/ship manager affiliations,” according to the Joint Maritime Information Centre, run by Western navies. Huthi attacks have prompted many shipping firms to make the time-consuming detour around the southern tip of Africa to avoid the Red Sea, which normally carries about 12 percent of global trade.
The Huthis had threatened to renew their attacks after the Gaza ceasefire collapsed in March, prompting a deadly US bombing campaign against the rebels that ended with the May ceasefire. However, the rebels said they would continue to target “Israeli ships.” In a statement on Tuesday, the US embassy blamed the Huthis for the Eternity C attack, calling it “the most violent” yet. Israel, which has also come under direct missile and drone attack by the Huthis, has carried out multiple strikes on rebel targets in Yemen, most recently on Sunday.
© 2024 AFP
