Houthis sink another merchant ship in Red Sea leaving 19 missing

Yemen's Houthi movement has sunk the merchant ship Eternity C in the Red Sea, the EU military operation in the region said on Wednesday, the second such incident in four days.

According to the European Union's Aspides mission, a rescue operation conducted by a private company saved six people from the sea, while 19 crew members remain missing.

The Houthis said the ship was en route to the Israeli port of Eilat.

They claimed that the operation involved six ballistic and cruise missiles, plus an unmanned boat.

Since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023, the Houthi militia has been targeting merchant ships allegedly linked to Israel. Their declared aim is to support Palestinian resistance group Hamas in the Gaza Strip, which, like the Houthis, is backed by Iran.

The merchant ship Magic Seas also sank after a Houthi attack on July 6.

The Houthis posted an video of the attack and the ship's sinking on social media, which was subsequently published in Greek media.

The video shows multiple explosions hitting the 200-meter-long, Liberia-flagged vessel, which then slowly submerges beneath the waves.

Ali al-Dalaimi, a senior member of the Houthi political bureau, stated that the attack on the Magic Seas was a "clear message of deterrence" to states and companies cooperating with Israel.

The Houthis said they had used drone boats and explosive devices attached to the Magic Seas's hull.

The EU's Operation Atalanta, monitoring piracy in the Indian Ocean, confirmed that the attackers approached in small boats and that the ship's 22-member crew abandoned the vessel after a fire broke out.

All of them were later rescued by a nearby merchant ship, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency.

The Houthis have vowed to continue their naval campaign until the Gaza blockade is lifted and Israeli operations cease.