2024-03-06 17:26:15
3/6/2024-|Last update: 3/6/202408:28 PM (Mecca time)
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The British maritime security agencies “Embry” and “UKMTO” reported – today, Wednesday – that a cargo ship flying the Barbados flag and owned by an American company was hit in an attack 57 nautical miles southwest of Aden in Yemen.
On the other hand, Yahya Saree, the military spokesman for the Houthis, announced that the attack was carried out on the American ship in the Gulf of Aden with naval missiles following its crew rejected the group’s warnings, noting that a precise hit had been achieved.
A shipping source told Reuters that 3 crew members of the cargo ship “True Confidence” were missing, and 4 others suffered severe burns following the ship was damaged.
An American official told Al Jazeera that his country is aware of reports of deaths and injuries among the ship’s crew, noting that it is owned by a company in Liberia.
On the other hand, Reuters quoted the owner of the targeted ship as saying that communication had been lost with 23 of its crew members and guards.
The Associated Press reported that the attack – which targeted the ship in the Gulf of Aden – was the first attack to cause deaths since the Houthis began attacks on ships in the Red Sea in solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza.
The same agency reported – quoting an American official – that an American and an Indian warship in the Gulf of Aden were working to provide assistance to the damaged ship.
For its part, Politico magazine quoted American officials as saying that the attack led to the death of two people and the injury of six others.
More details regarding the ship that was attacked off the coast #Aden Owned company in Liberia with correspondent #Al Jazeera Samir Al-Nimri#Gaza_War #News pic.twitter.com/Cg8NpWkc93
– Al Jazeera Channel (@AJArabic) March 6, 2024
Embry initially indicated that a nearby ship had reported an explosion near an American-owned cargo tanker flying the Barbados flag, warning other commercial ships to stay away from it.
Prior to that, “Embry” indicated that the ship began to change its course following it received a call from a naval vessel on which passengers introduced themselves as the Yemeni Navy, which is the name used by the Houthis.
Later, Ambrey indicated that reports confirmed that the ship was hit and damaged, adding that rescue operations are currently underway with crew members in lifeboats.
The British Navy’s UKMTO agency reported an attack southwest of Aden, and later indicated that the ship had been hit and damaged, and noted that nearby ships reported a strong explosion and a large column of smoke.
Targeting ships
Since the beginning of last December, the Houthis have claimed responsibility for targeting more than 20 ships in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait regions, using missiles and drones, as part of their measures to prevent the passage of Israeli ships or those heading to Israeli ports.
This comes in the context of the escalation the region is witnessing due to the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip for more than 4 months.
On February 19, the first British ship sank in the Red Sea following being targeted by a Houthi missile attack and remaining aground for 13 days off the Yemeni coast.
Since the beginning of 2024, the US-led “Guardian of Prosperity” coalition has launched raids that it says target Houthi sites in various regions of Yemen, in response to their attacks in the Red Sea, which has been met with a response from this group from time to time.
Over the past weeks, the city of Hodeidah and other areas in Yemen have been subjected to a large number of American-British raids, in an attempt to limit the capabilities of the Houthis.
With the intervention of Washington and London and the tensions taking a noticeable escalation last January, the Houthi group announced that it now considered all American and British ships among its military targets.
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#Deaths #injuries #Houthis #targeted #ship #Aden #Yemen #News
