In brief
The Houthi militia has taken crew members hostage from a Liberian-flagged cargo ship attacked in the Red Sea, leading to diplomatic calls for their immediate release, following the incident that killed at least two sailors.
Yemen’s Houthi militia has escalated tensions in the Red Sea by taking hostage several crew members of a cargo ship they struck earlier this week, according to a statement from the U.S. Mission to Yemen shared on social media. The Embassy emphasized the urgency for their “immediate and unconditional safe release.”The Houthi assault occurred on Monday against the Eternity C, a Liberian-flagged vessel navigating through the strategic waterway, which tragically resulted in the deaths of at least two crew members, based on statements from Liberian representatives during a United Nations briefing on Tuesday.Houthi military spokesperson Yahya al-Sarea claimed responsibility for the attack, asserting that the militia targeted the ship with both cruise and ballistic missiles due to its alleged course towards an Israeli port. However, this claim has not been independently verified. Al-Sarea also mentioned that the militia set out to rescue some of the ship's crew, providing them medical assistance and relocating them to safety, though he did not specify the number or release timeline for the crew taken hostage.This event echoes past actions by the Houthis, who previously seized another vessel, the Galaxy Leader, and held its crew captive for over a year. A senior Houthi political figure, Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, declined to discuss the details of the recent attack but expressed that the group prioritizes the safety of sailors.
