A second vessel was attacked by five rocket-propelled grenades in the Red Sea near Yemen, just a few hours after Houthis claimed responsibility for an earlier attack on a ship sailing in the same area, making voyages through the key region dangerous again.
Monday’s strike took place 51 nautical miles west of Yemen’s Al Hudaydah, the UK Maritime Trade Operations said. Two people on board the merchant vessel named MV Eternity C were injured and two others went missing, according to the duty officer of Cosmoship, the vessel owner.
The ship was carrying grains to Somalia for the World Food Programme and was attacked after completing the trip. The vessel is currently immobilized.
Earlier in the day, spokesperson for the Houthis Yahya Saree said in a televised statement the Iran-backed group on Sunday fired drones and missiles at the Magic Seas, an Ultramax vessel owned by Greece’s Stem Shipping.
That vessel was targeted because it called at Israeli ports in the past, Saree said. He later claimed on Telegram that Magic Seas sank. Representatives of Stem Shipping were not immediately available to comment.
The Houthis started attacking commercial ships in late 2023, prompting the number of vessels transiting the Suez Canal to collapse. Traffic through the waterway, which is crucial to global trade, remained low in the first half of 2025 despite the absence of new attacks. In May, US President Donald Trump said a truce had been brokered with the Houthis.
The resurgence of attacks now could once again reduce traffic through the region and send freight rates and insurance costs surging for shippers.
The United Arab Emirates said the ‘Safeen Prism’ vessel, operated by AD Ports Group, responded to a distress call from Magic Seas and rescued all 22 individuals aboard the vessel.
The Israel Defense Forces carried out airstrikes on Al Hudaydah, Ras Issa and Al-Salif ports on the Red Sea and a power plant in Al Hudaydah on Sunday, according to a post on its X account, following the attack on the Magic Seas.
Israel also hit the Galaxy Leader, a ship captured by the Houthis in November 2023, saying they used it to “track international vessels for terror operations.”
Photograph: Merchant ships in the southern Red Sea. Photo credit: Christopher Pike/Bloomberg
Copyright 2025 Bloomberg.
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