A ship attacked by Houthi rebels has sunk in the Red Sea after days of taking on water, officials said on Saturday.
This is the first ship to be completely destroyed as part of rebels’ campaign over Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Rubymar was carrying a cargo of fertilizer. The sinking of the vessel could cause ecological harm to the Red Sea and its coral reefs.
Uncompromising Houthi raids have already disrupted traffic in the important waterway for cargo and energy shipments moving from Asia and the Middle East to Europe.
Already, many vessels have turned away from the route. The sinking could see more detours.
On February 18, after being hit by a Houthi anti-ship ballistic missile, the Belize-flagged Rubymar had been drifting northward in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, an important waterway connecting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
Internationally recognised Yemen government, as well as a regional military official, confirmed the ship sank, reported AP.
The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center also acknowledged the Rubymar’s sinking on Saturday afternoon. The center watches over Mideast waterways.
The Central Command of the U.S. military declared on Sunday that the Rubymar sank at 2:15 a.m. local time Saturday.
On Friday, a satellite photo taken from Maxar Technologies showed new blast damage on the ship not previously seen. There were no other vessels around it.
Since November, Yemen’s Houthi rebels have frequently targeted vessels in the Red Sea and surrounding waters over the Israel-Hamas war.
