Ship damaged by Huthi strike sinks, Yemen government says

A cargo ship loaded with fertilizer has sunk in the Gulf of Aden less than two weeks after it was damaged by missiles from Yemen’s Huthi rebels, Yemen’s government said Saturday.

The Huthis claimed the February 19 attack against the Rubymar, a cargo ship flying a Belizean flag and operated by a Lebanese firm, which transported combustible fertilizers.

The crew abandoned the ship and evacuated to safety after it was hit by two missiles.

The vessel had departed the United Arab Emirates and was bound for the Bulgarian port of Varna.

“The MV Rubymar sank last night, coinciding with weather factors and strong winds at sea,” said a crisis cell of Yemen’s internationally recognised government in charge of the case.

Roy Khoury, chief executive of the ship’s operator Blue Fleet, said he was unaware of the sinking.

“We have nobody on board to check if it’s true or not,” he told AFP.

Fuel oil appeared to be leaking from the vessel in satellite images shared by Maxar Technologies and published by AFP.

The TankerTrackers website said the sinking would “cause an environmental catastrophe in the (Yemeni) territorial waters and in the Red Sea”.

This August 5, 2020 file photo, is the scene of an explosion that hit the seaport of Beirut, Lebanon. 220 killed ,7000 Injured after several hundred tons of ammonium nitrate exploded . 2750 tons were stored there for nearly 7 years, reportedly for use by the Syrian regime in its barrel bombs. The shipment was reportedly confiscated by Badri Daher a close associate of President Michel Aoun and his son-in-law Gebran Bassil , both are allied with the Syrian regime . The shipment arrived at a time when Syria was surrendering its chemical weapons to a UN backed organization for destruction . Aoun officially knew about the Ammonium Nitrate 2 weeks before the explosion but did nothing about it . He , along with his Hezbollah allies refused an international investigation but promised a local investigation that will bring the culprits to justice in less than a week but over 3 years later not one politician has been charged. According to an investigation by FBI only 20 % of the chemical exploded . Several intelligence reports revealed that Hezbollah shipped most of the nitrate to Syria and used the rest in Germany , UK and Cyprus . Many in Lebanon are wondering whether this shipment was also headed to Lebanon for use by Hezbollah (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, Beirut, Lebanon(Photo by Anwar Amro/AFP).

“A spill of ammonium nitrate fertiliser in the sea could have several significant impacts on marine ecosystems,” said Julien Jreissati, program director for Greenpeace in the Middle East and North Africa.

The maritime security agency UKMTO, run by the British navy, said the Rubymar had been 35 nautical miles (65 kilometres) from the Yemeni port of Mokha when its crew was forced to abandon it.

The Rubymar was identified as British-registered by the US military and security firm Ambrey, but Khoury has denied that information.

Since November, the Huthis have been carrying out attacks on ships linked to Israel in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, saying they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Israel has waged a war against Hamas in Gaza since the Palestinian militant group’s unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7.

In response to the Huthi attacks, Israel’s main ally the United States established a multinational force in December in order to protect maritime traffic in the strategic waterway.

Since January the US and its allies have launched numerous strikes against Huthi targets in Yemen, where the Iran-backed rebels have fought forces loyal to the internationally recognized government since 2014.

AFP / FRANCE24

Ship damaged by Huthi strike sinks, Yemen government says

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