A commercial ship flying the Indian flag was sunk in the waters near Yemen on Tuesday (August 4), with all 14 crew members on board rescued unharmed.
The Indian Minister of Shipping, Sarbananda Sonowal, posted on the social media platform X on Tuesday that the ship named “MSV Faize Noore Oliya” was hit by a shell in the waters near Yemen, causing the vessel to capsize and sink.
He emphasized that the crew, consisting of 13 Indian nationals and 1 Yemeni, totaling 14 people, were all rescued by the Yemeni Coast Guard and taken to the port city of Mokha in Yemen.
The incident reportedly took place in the southern waters of the strategic port of Hodeidah Port in the Red Sea off Yemen.
The Indian Minister of Shipping did not specify who fired the shell. However, in recent days, ships in the waters near Yemen have been repeatedly attacked by Houthi rebels, who are backed by Iran.
Sonowal said, “India strongly condemns this unjustified attack on this defenseless merchant sailing vessel. Ensuring the safety of our people is always our top priority.”
According to Reuters, the spokesperson of the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, Randhir Jaiswal, stated on Tuesday that India is coordinating with the Yemeni authorities regarding the incident and emphasized the need to halt attacks on commercial ships passing through the region.
Since the outbreak of the civil war in Yemen at the end of 2014 and in 2015, Yemen has been effectively split and controlled by various factions. Apart from the internationally recognized government, currently led by a Presidential Leadership Council with its temporary capital in Aden, there are main factions like the Houthi rebels and the Southern Transitional Council.
The Yemeni Ministry of Transport stated on Tuesday that the attack was carried out by Houthi rebels supported by Iran using a small boat loaded with explosives. The Yemeni news agency Saba also reported the government’s stance. So far, the Houthi rebels have not commented on the incident.
Reports revealed that following recent attacks by the Houthi rebels on several Saudi oil tankers, multiple Indian oil companies have shifted to onshore deliveries to procure oil from the Middle East, aiming to mitigate maritime transportation risks.