A Greek bulker hit by a Houthi missile off Yemen last week has managed to move away from the danger zone by its own means and is currently safe in the Gulf of Suez.
Managers and owners of the 76,800-dwt Minoan Courage (built 2013) also confirmed that none of the vessel’s Filipino crew was injured in the attack.
The ballasting ship was hit by one single missile on the aft starboard side on 1 October, managers at Greek shipping firm Modion Maritime told TradeWinds in an email on Monday.
The managers also confirmed an assessment by Western navy officials already reported by TradeWinds that the Houthis most likely hit the ship accidentally while chasing another vessel nearby — the 163,300-dwt Cordelia Moon (built 2013).
“It appears the missile was indeed aimed for another vessel but struck our vessel accidentally,” the Modion managers said.
“…we fail to identify any reason whatsoever for which our M/V Minoan Courage or any of our vessels may be targeted and we have never received any threat which could have possibly given rise to any concern at any given point,” Modion added.
Earlier this year, TradeWinds reported that the Houthis typically issue warnings to companies regarding the Red Sea routes they seek to block, either through threatening emails to management firms or direct radio contact with vessels in transit.
The theory that the Minoan Courage was hit by mistake is bolstered by the fact that the Houthis never officially assumed responsibility for the attack against the vessel.
That is in stark contrast with the Cordelia Moon, which the Yemeni group acknowledged attacking “with eight ballistic and winged missiles, a drone and [an] unscrewed surface boat”, according to a statement by its military spokesman Yahya Saree.
The Minoan Courage suffered no water ingress and the missile strike against it also caused no pollution, Modion managers said.
“M/V Minoan Courage has now resumed her voyage in her own means and is sailing towards a safe port where full damage assessment could be made and necessary repairs could be effected,” they added.
