On Monday, a U.S. government official confirmed last week’s reports that a Houthi attack on a Greek-owned cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden resulted in the death of a sailor and abandonment of the ship.
In detail, 82,000-dwt Liberian-flagged ship, called ‘Tutor’, sustained several hits from a drone and missile, as originally reported by the British and American navy.
The ship was abandoned last week due, to water ingress and a fire that particularly impacted the engine room, and is now adrift in the Red Sea, said the White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby.
Speaking about the attack on the Tutor and the death of a crew member at a press briefing on the greater impact of Houthi attacks in the Gulf of Aden, Kirby said, “The Houthis killed an innocent Filipino sailor.”
The Houthis have launched dozens of attacks on crucial maritime routes in the Gulf of Aden and region since mid-November of 2023, claiming to do so as a sign of support for Palestinians in Gaza during the Hamas-controlled region’s conflict with Israel.
Last week, the Houthi’s launch an attack on another ship called the Verbena, and both ships had “absolutely no connection to the war in Gaza,” according to Kirby. “They were not delivering weapons to Israel,” he emphasized.
The Houthis, allies of Iran, claim to target ships they believe are connected to Israel, whose primary political and diplomatic supporter is the U.S.
Connected to the attacks, the U.S. State Department announced new sanctions targeting “key individuals, some of whom are based in China,” for “enabling the Houthis to secure funds and acquire materials necessary for the construction of advanced weapons.”
Since capturing the capital, Sanaa, in 2014, the Houthis have taken control of large parts of Yemen in their conflict with forces loyal to the internationally recognized government of the Arabian Peninsula country, which is also facing a humanitarian catastrophe due to the armed conflict.
