Yemen Monitor/ Marib/ Exclusive:
The Houthis launched their first attack on Red Sea shipping since December, targeting the Liberian-flagged bulk carrier Magic Seas with drone boats, rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs), and small arms fire. This action risks a return of international forces to the Red Sea and potentially U.S. attacks.
Hours later, a British maritime authority announced that the ship had caught fire and begun to sink. Reuters reported that the sailors abandoned the vessel after water entered the deck.
The Houthis appear to be testing red lines in the current regional situation, amidst a pause in the Iran-Israel conflict and an ambiguous truce between the Yemeni movement and the U.S. regarding a cessation of attacks.
The bulk carrier was transiting northbound in the Red Sea, approximately 51 nautical miles southwest of Yemen’s Hudaidah port, when it was attacked by eight boats that opened fire with small arms and RPGs, according to an alert from maritime security firm AMBREY. The ship’s armed security team (AST) returned fire.
AMBREY stated that it appeared drone boats carrying bombs struck the vessel after it was targeted with small arms and rocket-propelled grenades. Houthi media reported on the attack but did not claim responsibility. It could take hours or even days before they acknowledge the assault.
A renewed Houthi campaign against shipping could draw U.S. and Western forces back into the region, especially after President Donald Trump targeted the Houthis in a significant air strike campaign, and a vague truce agreement was reached last May.
“The scale of the multi-weapon attack was intended to sink the vessel,” said Martin Kelly of EOS Risk Group. He added that the Houthis might have also launched missiles at the ship, but this has not been confirmed.
The Houthi attack comes at a sensitive moment in the Middle East, with a potential ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war hanging in the balance, and as Iran considers whether to resume negotiations over its nuclear program after U.S. airstrikes targeted its most sensitive nuclear sites amidst an Israeli war against the Iranian Republic.
Mohammed Al-Basha, a Yemeni analyst at the risk consultancy “Basha Report”, wrote: “It is likely intended as a message that the Houthis still possess the capability and willingness to strike strategic maritime targets regardless of diplomatic developments.”
The U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet, based in the Middle East, referred questions to U.S. Central Command, which stated it was aware of the incident without elaborating.
Moammar Al-Eryani, the Yemeni government’s Minister of Information, stated that “the attack proves once again that the Houthis are merely a facade for an Iranian scheme that uses Yemen as a platform to undermine regional and global stability, at a time when Tehran continues to arm the militia and provide it with military technology, including missiles, aircraft, drones, and naval mines.”
Between November 2023 and January 2025, the Houthis targeted over 100 commercial vessels using missiles and drones, sinking two ships and killing four sailors. This campaign severely disrupted trade through the Red Sea — a key waterway that typically sees $1 trillion worth of goods pass through each year.
