Houthi Missile Strike on Red Sea Ship Kills 2 Sailors
Two sailors were fatally wounded in a missile strike by Houthi rebels on a merchant vessel navigating the Red Sea, according to statements from British and US officials. This incident marks the first loss of life attributed to Houthi aggression against maritime traffic in this critical global shipping corridor.
Responsibility for the attack was claimed by the Houthis, who targeted the Greek-owned, Barbados-flagged True Confidence, resulting in the ship catching fire approximately 50 nautical miles off Aden’s coast, Yemen. The British embassy condemned the attack through a statement on X, highlighting the tragic death of “at least 2 innocent sailors” as a direct outcome of the Houthis’ indiscriminate missile barrages against international shipping lanes, urging an immediate cessation of such hostilities.
A senior US official also verified the casualties. The attack is part of a broader pattern of Houthi operations targeting Red Sea shipping since November, ostensibly in solidarity with Palestinians amid the ongoing Gaza conflict.
The escalation has prompted retaliatory measures from both Britain and the US, with the recent fatalities likely to intensify calls for more substantial military responses. Prior reports indicated severe injuries among the crew, with the True Confidence‘s operators revealing the ship was adrift and on fire, with uncertainty surrounding the condition of the crew comprising nationals from various countries.
US defense officials observed smoke emanating from the vessel, and the UK Maritime Trade Operations reported that the crew had abandoned the ship, which was “no longer under command.” Coalition forces are attempting to assist the vessel and its crew.
This event comes on the heels of the Rubymar‘s sinking, another victim of Houthi assaults, underscoring the increasing peril to maritime operations in the area. The disruptions have compelled shipping firms to reroute, significantly inflating operational costs and highlighting the pervasive risk to all vessels in the Red Sea, despite Houthi claims of targeting only specific nations.
Owned by Liberian-registered True Confidence Shipping and operated by Greece-based Third January Maritime, the True Confidence reportedly had no direct US affiliations.
