Five seafarers have been rescued after a cargo ship was attacked and sank off rebel-held Yemen, maritime monitors said yesterday, as a search continued for the remaining crew.
The Eternity C, a Liberian-flagged bulk carrier, was badly damaged in the deadly attack in the Red Sea that started on Monday and continued into Tuesday.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels had not claimed responsibility for the incident, which came after the militant group boarded and sank another cargo ship on Sunday.
Photo: EPA
The attacks mark the first wave of Houthi-linked ship strikes since last month’s 12-day war between their main backer, Iran, and Israel.
“Search-and-rescue operations commenced overnight,” the British Royal Navy’s UK Maritime Trade Operations said.
“Five crew members have been rescued and searches continue for those remaining,” it said.
On Tuesday, the EU force patrolling the Red Sea told reporters that three people were killed and at least two injured — including a Russian electrician who lost a leg — in the attack on the Eternity C.
The US embassy in Yemen has accused the Houthis of staging the attack, with UK-based security firm Ambrey also saying the group was likely to blame.
In a statement on Tuesday, the embassy called the attack on the Eternity C “the most violent” yet and accused the Houthis of “undermining freedom of navigation in the Red Sea.”
Twenty-two people were aboard the Greek-operated vessel, all but one from the Philippines, officials in Manila said.
The Houthis have attacked ships in the vital trade route since the start of the Gaza war, claiming solidarity with the Palestinian cause.
However, Sunday’s attack on the Magic Seas was the group’s first since late last year, following a Gaza ceasefire and a heavy US bombing campaign targeting Houthi areas.
The rebels released a propaganda video showing masked, armed men storming the Magic Seas and simultaneous explosions that scuttled the bulk carrier.
The US bombing campaign, aimed at stamping out the attacks, ended with a ceasefire in early May.
However, the rebels told reporters that they would continue to target “Israeli ships.”
On Monday, they said they hit the Magic Seas because the company that owns it had done business with Israel and used its ports.
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