Cargo ship attacked, sinks in Red Sea - 4 people found after 48 hours adrift

So far, 10 people from the Eternity C, including eight Filipino sailors, one Indian and one Greek security officer, have been rescued. The four people rescued on July 10 had been drifting at sea for nearly 48 hours.

A sailor from the Eternity C ship was found adrift at sea (Photo: Reuters).

"The discovery of more survivors gives us hope to continue searching for the missing, as requested by the Greek ship operator, and proves that our search plan is on the right track," said Nikos Georgopoulos, an official at the Greek maritime risk company Diaplous.

According to maritime security sources, 11 people are still missing and some are believed to be being held by Houthi forces.

The US Embassy in Yemen accused Houthi forces of kidnapping the sailors and called for their immediate and unconditional release.

According to maritime security sources, Houthi forces are believed to be holding six members of the 22-member crew and three security personnel of the Eternity C ship .

"We are extremely concerned for the safety of the sailors being held by the Houthis, as well as those still missing," said Ellie Shafik, director of intelligence at UK-based maritime risk management company Vanguard Tech, stressing that ensuring their safety and urgent rescue should be a top priority.

However, a military spokesman for the Houthi forces said on television that "Yemeni naval forces rescued some crew members, provided medical care and took them to safety".

The Eternity C is the second Greek cargo ship to sink in a week, ending months of relative calm off Yemen - the gateway to the Red Sea and a vital global shipping route for oil and goods.

The Eternity C was first attacked on July 7 by a drone at sea and a rocket-propelled grenade launched from a speedboat.

Four people are believed to have been killed in the attacks, according to security sources. If confirmed, these would be the first fatalities in the area since June 2024.

The ship was then attacked a second time on July 8 and the crew was forced to jump into the sea to escape.

The Eternity C finally sank on July 9. The same day, a search and rescue operation began. The ship’s operator, Cosmoship Management, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.

The Eternity C sank after being repeatedly attacked at sea (Photo: Reuters).

The attack came just days after the Magic Seas, also operated by Greece and flying a Liberian flag, sank after being attacked by Houthi forces.

Analysis of shipping data shows that several vessels in the relevant fleets have visited Israeli ports in the past year – a factor believed to be the reason for the Houthi group's targeting.

The Houthis have been carrying out a campaign of attacks on ships passing through the Red Sea since November 2023 in solidarity with and support for the Palestinians, affecting more than 100 ships.

According to data from Lloyd's List Intelligence, shipping traffic through the Bab al-Mandab Strait - the southern gateway to the Red Sea and the entrance to the Gulf of Aden - has dropped sharply, from 43 ships per day on July 1 to 32 ships per day as of July 9.

Many shipping lines have stopped operating here due to concerns about the risk of attack.

The situation became so tense that many ships passing through on July 10 announced that they had Chinese crew and management or armed personnel on board.

One ship even broadcast a message unrelated to Israel, according to ship tracking data from the MarineTraffic platform.