Yemen Monitor/ Hudaidah/ Exclusive:
A massive fire broke out on a liquefied gas tanker off the port of Ras Isa in Yemen last week. This coincides with increasing reports of mysterious explosions and drone attacks targeting facilities and ports controlled by the Houthi group, amid a strict media blackout by the group regarding the circumstances of these incidents.
Officials at the port of Ras Isa told “Yemen Monitor” that, drones have been intermittently bombing oil and gas tanks and the port area since the beginning of September.
No party has claimed responsibility for the attacks, and the Houthis refuse to comment on the incident.
The officials stated that the drone attacks resulted in several drivers of gas and oil derivative tankers being killed or wounded. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak to the media.
A passing transport ship near the port of Ras Isa photographed the gas tanker burning, amidst pleas from the mostly Pakistani crew for intervention to rescue them.
The medium-sized gas tanker, named the “Clipper” and subject to U.S. sanctions, was carrying a shipment of Iranian gas and began burning on September 16. This incident raises increasing concern about navigational safety in Yemeni waters and exacerbates the humanitarian and logistical situation in the country.
Pakistani media reported that the incident put 27 Pakistani sailors in imminent danger, after news reports confirmed the tanker was hit by a “drone or missile attack” while approaching the port of Ras Isa.
The Houthi-affiliated Humanitarian Operations Coordination Committee (HOCC) claimed the crew was in “good condition” in response to international media inquiries. However, video messages and distress calls received by Pakistani media revealed that the sailors are trapped in “life-threatening“ conditions, confined to a cabin after being forcibly evacuated and then returned to the burning vessel.
One of the crew members stated in a video recording: “We were attacked by drones on the night of the 16th [of this month]. The ship’s condition is very bad, and our families are very worried. We ask the Government of Pakistan and the concerned authorities to rescue us immediately.”
The sailors indicate that they face severe shortages of basic supplies like food and water, as well as a lack of proper firefighting equipment, multiplying their dangerous ordeal which continues off the Yemeni coast. The families of the sailors have directed urgent appeals to the Pakistani government and international authorities to intervene and save their loved ones.
The Clipper incident comes in a volatile Yemeni context marked by a rise in reports of mysterious explosions and attacks hitting Houthi-controlled sites, especially around the strategic ports of Hudaidah and Ras Isa. Despite the significance of these incidents and their security repercussions, the Houthi group is imposing a tight media blackout, which increases suspicion and speculation about the parties behind these strikes.
According to informed sources, the targeting of ships transporting Iranian cargo to Houthi-controlled areas, or the targeting of vital facilities, suggests a potential escalation in the shadow war taking place in the region, raising the level of risk to global supply chains and Yemen’s fragile infrastructure.
