Houthis will attack more British ships after Rubymar sinks in Gulf
YEMEN’S Iran-backed Houthis vowed on Sunday to continue targeting British ships in the Gulf of Aden after the sinking of a Uk-owned vessel.
“Yemen will continue to sink more British ships, and any repercussions or other damages will be added to Britain’s bill,” Hussein al-ezzi, deputy foreign minister in the Houthi-led government, said in a post on X.
“It is a rogue state that attacks Yemen and partners with America in sponsoring ongoing crimes against civilians in Gaza.”
Rubymar was carrying a cargo of fertiliser when it came under attack on Feb 18. It sank over the weekend after days of taking on water, after its crew had evacuated. It is the first vessel to be fully destroyed by the Houthis’ who say they are driven by the war against Hamas.
Houthi militants have repeatedly launched drones and missiles against international commercial vessels since mid-november “in solidarity with the Palestinians”.
Their Red Sea attacks have disrupted global shipping, forcing firms to make longer and more expensive journeys around southern Africa and stoking fears that the Israel-hamas war could destabilise the wider Middle East.
The sinking may mean further detours and higher insurance premiums for vessels usng the waterway, potentially driving up global inflation and affecting aid shipments to the region. Greenpeace has also warned of the environmental risk posed by the 21,000 metric tons of fertiliser carried by the vessel, warning it could “disrupt the balance of the marine ecosystems, triggering cascading effects throughout the food web”.
Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak, the prime minister of Yemen’s internationally recognised government, called the sinking “an unprecedented environmental disaster”. He wrote on X: “It’s a new disaster for our country and our people. Every day, we pay for the Houthi’s adventures, which [are] plunging Yemen into the coup disaster and war.”