“The missile hit the ship, and the multinational crew reported that three people were killed, at least four others were injured, three of them in critical condition, and the ship sustained significant damage,” Centcom said in a statement. did. “The crew has abandoned ship and coalition warships have responded and are assessing the situation.”
In a social media post early Thursday morning, the Philippine Migrant Workers Administration identified the two sailors killed and two injured crew members in the incident as Filipino nationals.
“It is with great regret that the Department of Migrants and Workers (DMW) regrets to inform us that recent attacks by Houthi rebels on ships sailing in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden have affected the lives of Filipino seafarers,” the ministry said, without giving their names and identities. We have confirmed that two people have died.” “We have also received reports that two other Filipino crew members were seriously injured in the attack on the ship.”
Britain's Maritime Trade Agency said the ship was at sea 54 nautical miles south-west of Aden on Wednesday after being called out for 30 minutes by a group claiming to be the Yemeni Navy and ordered to change course before being “damaged” by a Houthi altercation. “Ta”. . The name of her ship was not identified at the time.
The Houthis claimed the attack.
“The Yemeni army's navy conducted a targeted operation against an American ship (TRUE CONFIDENCE) in the Gulf of Aden using a large number of suitable naval missiles. The attack was accurate and caused fire.” Mr. Salee” Said The X social media platform added that the ship rejected the Houthis' warning messages.
“All crew members of the targeted vessel must evacuate immediately after the initial attack,” he said.
CNBC has contacted the ship's operator, Third January Maritime.
This is the first deadly attack since the Houthis launched maritime attacks on ships transiting the crucial Red Sea shipping lane, which accounts for 12% of global traffic. The Houthis claim solidarity with Palestinian civilians at risk from Israel's military operation against the Iranian-backed militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Although Yemeni forces say they only target vessels associated with Israel, the United States, and the United Kingdom (after the latter three countries launched retaliatory missile attacks in response to the chaos in the Red Sea), they have repeatedly attacked unaffiliated vessels. ing.
On Saturday, the Belizean-flagged general cargo ship Rubimar became the first victim to sink in the Red Sea after it was abandoned at sea and set adrift following a Houthi attack in mid-February.
In another incident earlier this week, four major communications cables in the Red Sea were severed. The cause of the disconnection was not immediately clear, but HGC Communications said the incident affected 25% of its traffic.
