Houthis reportedly attack 2 ships in Red Sea after Israel's 'Black Flag'

Moammar al-Eryani, Yemen's Minister of Information, said the Houthis were behind the attack on a cargo ship in the Red Sea on the evening of July 7 ( local time), according to AFP news agency .

The Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned cargo ship Eternity C was sailing north toward the Suez Canal when it was attacked by gunmen in small boats with the help of bomb-laden drones, according to private security firm Ambrey. Security forces on board returned fire.

“The ship’s engines are believed to have been disabled and Ambrey noted that the vessel began to drift freely,” the company said.

Politico quoted Greek government officials and the ship's owner as saying that two crew members were injured and two were missing after the attack .

The Houthis have not commented on the incident.

Houthis reportedly attacked two ships in the Red Sea after an Israeli airstrike. Photo: AFP

The attack came just hours after the Houthis claimed to have attacked the Greek-owned, Liberian-flagged cargo ship Magic Seas with artillery, missiles and remote-controlled boats loaded with explosives, causing the ship to sink in the Red Sea.

However, Stem Shipping (Greece) - the company operating the Magic Seas - told Reuters news agency that it could not verify the information that the ship was sunk after being attacked by the Houthis.

According to Stem Shipping, all 22 crew members were rescued by a passing commercial ship and are expected to arrive in Djibouti (a country in East Africa) late on July 7.

The Houthis' attack on two ships in the Red Sea came after Israel launched a large-scale airstrike campaign called "Black Flag" targeting Houthis' facilities in Yemen in the early morning of July 7 (local time).

The above series of developments ended about half a year of silence in the Red Sea.

Previously, Houthi attacks from late 2023 to late 2024 disrupted shipping routes between Europe and Asia through the Suez Canal.

The Houthis have carried out more than 100 attacks on ships in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, claiming to support Palestinians in the wake of the Israel-Hamas conflict . However, these attacks have stopped this year, with the last recorded incident taking place in December 2024.

Immediately after the Houthis attacked the second ship, Brent crude oil traded in the US increased by 2.08% to 69.72 USD/barrel, while WTI crude oil increased by 2.39% to 68.09 USD/barrel.