March 2, 2024
Image supply, EPA-EEE/REX/Shutterstock
picture caption,
The Rubimaa was the primary ship sunk by the Houthis.
A cargo ship sank two weeks after the Houthi assault within the Gulf of Aden.
The Yemeni authorities mentioned the Rubimar had been adrift and submerged in water for a number of days earlier than sinking.
It was the primary ship to sink since Iranian-backed rebels in Yemen started concentrating on ships within the Red Sea.
The ship was reportedly carrying fertilizer and consultants mentioned the sinking risked an “environmental disaster”.
Rubimar was within the Gulf of Aden close to the Bab al-Mandab Strait when it was attacked by two missiles fired by Yemen-based Houthi rebels.
The British authorities introduced 10 days in the past that the ship was submerged in water and that every one 24 crew members had been rescued.
The BBC obtained photos of the ship on February 21, which confirmed the strict submerged however nonetheless floating.
The ship’s homeowners mentioned on the time that it was being towed to close by Djibouti, however there was nonetheless an opportunity it might sink. There had been no passengers on board and it couldn’t be confirmed.
The 172-meter-long Rubimar was Belize-flagged and operated by a Lebanese firm.
The registered proprietor is Golden Adventure Shipping with an handle within the Port of Southampton, UK.
The ship is believed to have been carrying a cargo of ammonium nitrate fertilizer.
Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak, Prime Minister of Yemen’s internationally acknowledged authorities, known as the ship’s sinking an “unprecedented environmental catastrophe.”
Greenpeace mentioned the ammonium nitrate spill might have “severe impacts on marine ecosystems”, with the southern Red Sea house to coral reefs, coastal mangroves and a various vary of marine life.
The Department of Marine Sciences on the University of Jordan mentioned giant quantities of fertilizer launched into the ocean might stimulate extreme algae development and eat a lot oxygen that ordinary marine life might now not survive.
The ministry’s director-general, Ali Al Sawarmi, mentioned an emergency plan was wanted to “set up a cleanup technique.”
Houthi chief Mohamed Ali al-Houthi, in a put up on ” he mentioned.
Houthi rebels have been attacking Israeli-linked vessels within the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November, accusing them of supporting Palestinians in Gaza.
picture caption,
Source: Acled, December 2023
In response, the US and UK carried out a collection of assaults in opposition to Houthi targets in Yemen.
On Saturday, Britain’s maritime commerce group UKMTO mentioned it had obtained stories of a ship being attacked west of Yemen’s Mokha port.
Separately, UKMTO reported that the ship sank close to the place the Rubimar was final seen.
U.S. Central Command introduced that it had carried out a “self-defense strike” in opposition to a Houthi surface-to-air missile that was about to be launched from Yemen.
The command mentioned the missile posed an imminent menace to U.S. navy plane.
The Italian Ministry of Defense introduced on the identical day that an Italian naval vessel shot down a drone flying in direction of Italy within the Red Sea.
Rebel assaults on business ships within the Red Sea have prompted many transport firms to droop use of the waterway, by means of which about 12% of the world’s maritime commerce passes.
Airstrikes by the U.S.-led naval coalition in opposition to Houthi targets have continued for greater than a month, however the rebels proceed to hold out large-scale assaults.
They say they’ll proceed to focus on ships within the Red Sea area till Israel ceases navy operations in opposition to Hamas within the Gaza Strip.