Six crew members have been rescued, while at least four sailors are confirmed dead and 15 others are missing following the sinking of the Greek-owned vessel
By Asaye Bankole
A Liberian-flagged cargo ship, the Eternity C, has sunk in the Red Sea after an attack claimed by Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
According to a European Union naval force, six crew members have been rescued, while at least four sailors are confirmed dead and 15 others are missing following the sinking of the Greek-owned vessel.
The Houthis said the attack was carried out in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, aiming to pressure the Israeli military to end its assault on the besieged enclave. The group’s military spokesperson, Yahya Saree, claimed the ship was headed towards Israel and that the Houthis had provided medical care to some of the crew members and transported them to a safe location.
A video released by the Houthis appears to show the attack on the Eternity C, including a call for the crew to evacuate and explosions on the ship before it sank. However, the United States Mission in Yemen has accused the Houthis of kidnapping surviving crew members and called for their immediate and unconditional safe release.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations centre (UKMTO) reported that the ship sustained “significant damage” and “lost all propulsion” before sinking off Yemen’s port city of Hodeidah, which is under Houthi control.
UK-based security firm Ambrey confirmed the vessel sank in the same area.
Al Jazeera reports that the European Union’s Operation Aspides said it had rescued five Filipinos and one Indian from the 22-member crew and three-member security team.
Meanwhile, leading shipping industry associations, including the International Chamber of Shipping and BIMCO, have denounced the deadly operation and called for robust maritime security in the region via a joint statement on Wednesday.
“These vessels have been attacked with callous disregard for the lives of innocent civilian seafarers,” they said as quoted by the outlet.
“This tragedy illuminates the need for nations to maintain robust support in protecting shipping and vital sea lanes.”
The attack on the Eternity C came one day after the Houthis claimed responsibility for attacking another cargo ship, the Magic Seas, in the Red Sea, causing it to sink. All the crew were rescued.
Both the Eternity C and Magic Seas were Liberian-flagged vessels operated by Greek shipping companies.
The assaults mark the first attacks on shipping in the Red Sea since late 2024, potentially signalling the start of a new armed campaign threatening the waterway, which had begun to see more traffic in recent weeks.
Between November 2023 and January 2025, the Houthis launched more than 100 attacks targeting commercial vessels, sinking two ships, seizing another and killing at least four seafarers.
After Sunday’s attack on the Magic Seas, the Houthis declared that ships owned by companies with ties to Israel were a “legitimate target”, and pledged to “prevent Israeli navigation in the Red and Arabian Seas … until the aggression against Gaza stops and the blockade is lifted”.
Yemen’s exiled government, the European Union’s Operation Aspides military force and the US State Department had already blamed the rebels for the attack on Eternity C before the Houthis claimed responsibility.
“These attacks demonstrate the ongoing threat that Iran-backed Houthi rebels pose to freedom of navigation and to regional economic and maritime security,” State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said.
“The United States has been clear: We will continue to take necessary action to protect freedom of navigation and commercial shipping from Houthi terrorist attacks,” she added.
Washington and the Houthis agreed to a deal on May 6 that ended a US bombing campaign against the group, in exchange for the rebels stopping attacks on US vessels in the Red Sea.
However, the Houthis said that the deal did not stop them from attacking Israeli-linked shipping.
The Eternity C had been heading north towards the Suez Canal when it came under fire by men in small boats and bomb-carrying drones on Monday night, with security guards on board firing their weapons, according to Operation Aspides and Ambrey, cited by The Associated Press news agency.
The Eternity C’s operator, Cosmoship Management, has not commented on casualties or injuries.
If confirmed, the four reported deaths would be the first deaths from attacks on shipping in the Red Sea since June 2024.
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