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Arabia

Ambrey: UK-registered cargo ship reported under attack in Bab al-Mandab Strait

2024-02-19

[JPost] The ship was heading north during its journey from Khor Fakkan in the United Arab Emirates to Varna, Bulgaria, when the attack occurred, Ambrey said in an advisory note.

British maritime security firm Ambrey said on Sunday that a Belize-flagged, UK-registered and Lebanese-operated open hatch general cargo ship reported being under attack in Bab al-Mandab Strait.

The ship was heading north during its journey from Khor Fakkan in the United Arab Emirates to Varna, Bulgaria, when the attack occurred, Ambrey said in an advisory note.

"The partially laden vessel briefly slowed from ten to six knots and deviated course, and contacted the Djiboutian Navy, before returning to her previous course and speed," the note read.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said it has received a report of an incident 35 nautical miles south of Yemen's Al Mukha.

Update at 2:20 a.m. ET:

"The partially laden vessel briefly slowed from 10 to six knots and deviated course, and contacted the Djiboutian Navy, before returning to her previous course and speed," it said.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said it had received a report of an incident 35 nautical miles south of Yemen's Al Mukha, and that an explosion in close proximity to a vessel had resulted in damage, the agency said in an advisory note. It did not identify the ship.

"Military authorities report crew have abandoned the vessel", UKMTO added in an updated advisory note early on Monday, adding that the vessel was at anchor and all crew were safe.

The Times of Israel adds:

Meanwhile,
...back at the chili cook-off, Chuck reached for the green sauce...
US forces in the Red Sea successfully conducted "five self-defense strikes" to foil attacks by land and sea from Iran's Houthi sock puppets

...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The legitimate Yemeni government has accused the them of having ties to the Iranian government. Honest they did. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews They like shooting off... ummm... missiles that they would have us believe they make at home in their basements. On the plus side, they did murder Ali Abdullah Saleh, which was the only way the country was ever going to be rid of him...
-controlled areas of Yemen
...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of...
, the American military said Sunday.

The strikes occurred between 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday Sanaa time (1200 and 1700 GMT), the US Central Command said, and were part of a series of actions taken by the United States and its allies against the Houthis, aimed at halting the Iran-backed rebels’ repeated attacks on Red Sea shipping lanes.

The five strikes included targeting "the first observed Houthi employment of a UUV (unmanned underwater vessel) since attacks began" in October, according to a statement from CENTCOM.

Another of the five involved an unmanned surface vessel, or USV, essentially a floating drone. The use of such vessels has been comparatively rare.

The other three involved anti-ship cruise missiles, the statement said.

"CENTCOM identified the anti-ship cruise missiles, unmanned underwater vessel, and the unmanned surface vessel in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen and determined they presented an imminent threat to US Navy ships and merchant vessels in the region," it said, adding it struck the five to "make international waters safer."

The Red Sea attacks have raised insurance premiums for shipping companies, forcing many to avoid the Red Sea, a vital route that normally carries about 12 percent of global maritime trade.

Posted by:Frank G

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