According to a security agency on Friday, the crew of a ship that was ambushed by Huthi rebels in Yemen has been evacuated, and the ship is currently drifting in the Red Sea.
In the most recent of several Huthi strikes, the MV Tutor was abandoned after it was hit by a sea drone off rebel-held Hodeida on Wednesday, seriously flooding the area.
Since the Israel-Hamas war began, the rebels supported by Iran have been harassing this crucial water passage, causing long detours for a large amount of marine trade.
“The crew of the vessel has been evacuated by military authorities,” said the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), which is run by the British navy.
“The vessel has been abandoned and is drifting.”
Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos had earlier pledged to help the Filipino seamen on board and transfer them to Djibouti, across the Red Sea from Yemen, with the UKMTO’s help.
“We are doing everything that we can do,” he said in a statement.
The US military’s Central Command said on Wednesday that a marine drone and a “unknown aerial projectile” struck the Greek-owned and operated commerce ship flying the Liberian flag.
According to security company Ambrey, this was the first occasion the Huthis have used water-borne, remote-controlled explosives to attack a ship.
It was part of a wave of strikes this week that left a sailor critically injured, forcing US forces to evacuate the MV Verbena in the Gulf of Aden on Thursday.
They come after the most recent retaliatory strikes by US and British forces last month, which the Huthis claimed killed sixteen people and pledged to intensify their activities.
