Video exposure! The first cargo ship was "sunk"! Eu launches escort mission

Yahya Sarea said in a statement that the British freighter Rubymar, which was attacked earlier, had completely sunk.

According to a previous statement from the UK Office of Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), the freighter was attacked on Sunday (February 18) evening local time about 65 kilometers south of the Yemeni port city of Moha.

UKMTO said that the attack caused the Ruby's crew to abandon ship, but fortunately all the crew members were safe and sound.

According to Ambrey, a British maritime risk management company, the Ruby is a Belize-flagged cargo ship registered in Southampton, England, and operated by Lebanon. The cargo ship was leaving a port in the United Arab Emirates on its way to Bulgaria when the incident occurred.

It should be noted that while a large number of cargo ships have also been hit in the past few months, the attack on the Ruby freighter may be one of the most devastating cases of the Houthis to date. Since November 2023, no ship attacked in the Red Sea has been serious enough to "abandon ship" or even "sink."

As for the Houthi claim that the "Ruby" has completely sunk, although the ship's owner and ship management company have not publicly stated the actual condition of the ship, nor have officials or maritime security intelligence companies been clear. But it is worth mentioning that the ship's Lebanese operator has confirmed that the cabin deck and the hull near the engine room were separately hit by a missile, causing the ship to list. Based on this situation, it is highly likely that the "Ruby" freighter has sunk.

It is worth noting that in one day, in addition to sinking the Ruby, the missiles of the Houthi armed forces also accurately attacked two American ships, the "Sea Champion" and the "Navis Fortuna", and shot down a US military drone. Yemen's Houthi armed forces said that in the Red Sea city of Hodeida successfully shot down a US MQ-9 drone, which is the second time since November last year to shoot down the same type of "death" large surveillance drone.

At the same time, the United States and the United Kingdom carried out air strikes on the "Jabana" area in the northern part of Hodeida province controlled by the Houthis on the 19th local time, highlighting the continuing tensions in the area. The US Central Command confirmed in a statement on the 18th that the US military carried out five air strikes on three anti-ship cruise missiles, an unmanned underwater vehicle and an unmanned surface ship in the area controlled by the Houthi armed forces between 15:00 and 20:00 on the 17th, Saana time, Yemen. But the Houthis say the U.S. military failed to achieve its goals.

A new round of Israeli-Palestinian conflict broke out in October last year, with the Houthis using drones and missiles to repeatedly attack ships linked to Israel, the United States and Britain in the waters of the Red Sea in a show of support for the Palestinians. In order to avoid the risk, many shipping giants have decided to circumnavigate the Red Sea, but there are still shipping companies to risk choosing to cross the Red Sea to save costs.

In addition, the United States designated the Houthis as a "specially designated global terrorist" entity and related sanctions officially took effect. In response, the Houthis condemned the US sanctions and said they would launch more attacks on the Red Sea route. Tensions have risen further in the Red Sea.