GMM Safety | 2024-05-02 | Case Accidents |

A new video released by the Houthis appears to show an attack on a Maltese-flagged bulk carrier in the Red Sea on Monday.

The footage, which has not been verified, would be the first of its kind released by the Yemen-based terrorist group since launching drone and missile attacks against commercial shipping in the Red Sea region in mid-November in solidarity with Palestinians against Israel’s military actions in Gaza.

The grainy video shows an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) taking off and subsequently targeting a bulk carrier underway. The vessel in the video appears to be the M/V Cyclades. A time-stamp indicates that the footage was captured on April 29, 2024, between 09:39 and 09:42, as the drone approaches the vessel’s superstructure from the stern before cutting out.

In the past week, the Houthis have renewed their attacks.

The US Central Command reported on Monday that between 10:00 a.m. and 5:20 p.m. (Sanaa time), the Houthis shot three anti-ship ballistic missiles along with three UAVs from Yemen into the waters of the Red Sea, targeting the Cyclades.

There were no injuries, and the vessel could continue on the voyage.

CENTCOM reported that earlier, roughly at 7:49 a.m., its forces impaired a Houthi-fired UAV that was heading toward the USS Laboon and USS Philippine Sea in the waters of the Red Sea, with zero reported damages to the US, coalition, or any merchant vessels.

The video comes after the Houthis’ confirmation of the first attack launched in the Indian Ocean against the MSC Orion.

The Houthis say that their attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden are aimed at putting pressure on Israel to bring an end to its ongoing war against Hamas, which has claimed the lives of over 34,000 Palestinians in Gaza.The war began when the Hamas militants attacked Israel on 7 October, killing 1,200 individuals and taking 250 more hostages.

The Houthis have launched over 50 attacks on shipping, sunk a vessel and seized another since November.

Shipping through the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea has drastically declined due to such a threat.

Houthi attacks had, however, dropped in recent weeks as a US-led airstrike mission in Yemen had targeted.

On Saturday, the Houthis said that they shot down another MQ-9 Reaper drone belonging to the US, airing footage of parts that corresponded to the known pieces of the unmanned aircraft.The US military acknowledged that the drone crashed but mentioned that a probe was in progress.

Reference: FOX59