Yemen’s Houthi rebels claimed on Monday to have set their sights on three vessels underway in the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean.
Gianluigi Aponte’s MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company, a regular target for Houthi rebels of late, Clearlake and Greek owner Minerva Marine are the owners of the vessels mentioned.
Their claims, however, have not been corroborated yet by any other military or maritime security source that usually reports such strikes.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said his group has “targeted” no fewer than three commercial vessels and two “American military destroyers”, as part of a campaign to disrupt the trade of Israel and its close Western allies.
In a statement on its official website, the militia identified the merchant ships that it “carried out … joint operations against” as the “Larego Desert”, the “MSC Mechela” and the “Minerva Lisa”.
The only ships sailing in the region under similar names are Clearlake’s 49,700-dwt Largo Desert (built 2018), MSC’s 6,724-teu MSC Michaela (built 2002) and 103,800-dwt Minerva Lisa (built 2004), owned by Greek shipowner Andreas Martinos’ Minerva Marine.
No Western source, including the Royal Navy’s UK Maritime Trade Operations, has so far reported any incident against these vessels.
Equally uncorroborated is another pair of attacks that the Houthis claimed on 24 May, which included their alleged first strike against a vessel underway in the Mediterranean.
The last Houthi attack for which independent confirmation exists was on 23 May, against the 50,800-dwt Greek-controlled bulker Yannis (built 2009), when a missile landed off its port side in the Red Sea.
That vessel is owned by Eastern Mediterranean Maritime, a company led by Thanasis Martinos.
All of the Yannis’ crew members were safe and no damage was reported.
Houthi attacks, however, can be lethal.
The group has launched about 100 strikes against commercial ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden over the past six months and has displayed a capability to carry out long-distance drone strikes in the Indian Ocean.
Carried out via drones, missiles, attempted boardings and one hijacking, the attacks resulted in the death of three seafarers and 10 Houthi fighters, one ship sinking and the abduction of 25 crew members on the 5,100-ceu Galaxy Leader (built 2002).
Official Houthi policy is to target vessels they believe to be affiliated with the US, the UK and Israel or to be trading with Israel — to pressure the Israeli government to stop its military campaign against the Palestinian Hamas group in Gaza.
The attacks, however, have become indiscriminate over time, whether by accident or design.
