The situation escalates in the Red Sea: three merchant ships are attacked with four missiles. The US High Command blames the Huthi rebels in Yemen.
The bulker “Unity Explorer” was fired upon first. According to the US Central Command, one missile missed its target, while the other hit the Ultramax freighter (60,700 tdw) and caused minor damage. The freighter sails under the flag of the Bahamas and belongs to a British shipping company. [ds_preview]
The US destroyer “USS Carney”, on patrol in the Red Sea, rushed to help after the crew of the bulker sent out a distress call. A few hours after the first incident, a drone was shot down that had been launched from Yemen from the area occupied by the Houthis, the report continues. It is possible that the destroyer itself was the target of this attack. The US ship was not damaged.
At around 15:30 on the same day, the Panamax container ship “Number 9” (4,253 TEU, built in 2007) was hit by a missile. The crew of the ship, which flies the Panamanian flag and is owned by Mount Street Capital, also reported damage but no injuries.
USA blames Huthi and Iran
Just one hour later, the “Sophie II” sent out a distress call and announced that it had been hit by a missile. In this case too, none of the crew members from a total of eight countries were injured, but the ship was damaged.
Two weeks ago, the Iranian-backed rebel group in the Red Sea captured an Israeli car transporter belonging to the Ray Car Carriers shipping company and brought it to the Yemeni coast. The Houthis had previously threatened to attack “all ships” with links to Israel.
“These attacks pose a direct threat to international trade and maritime security,” according to Central Command. The US military accuses the Houthi rebels and Iran of being to blame for the escalation. “We have every reason to believe that while these attacks are perpetrated by the Houthis in Yemen, they are fully supported by Iran.”
Today, there were four attacks against three separate commercial vessels operating in international waters in the southern Red Sea. These three vessels are connected to 14 separate nations. The Arleigh-Burke Class destroyer USS CARNEY responded to the distress calls from the…
– U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) December 3, 2023
