ATHENS (Reuters) -The Greece-based manager of a vessel that sank after being attacked by Houthi militants off Yemen earlier this month expressed relief on Tuesday after seeing a video showing 11 missing crew members alive.
The six-minute video was released by the Iran-aligned Houthis, who said on Monday they had rescued the seafarers from the Liberia-flagged Eternity C cargo ship.
In a statement, the Athens-based ship management company said efforts were continuing to ensure the sailors’ “safe and swift return home to their families”.
“Cosmoship Management is deeply relieved to see in video footage released by the Houthis on … 28 July that ten of our missing crew members, as well as one of the vessel’s security guards (11 in total), are alive and appear to be receiving care,” it said.
The Philippine government confirmed on Tuesday that nine of the rescued seafarers were Filipinos.
Migrant workers minister Hans Cacdac said the sailors were in “good physical condition” based on accounts from their families, and that the government was working to secure their release and safe return.
Cosmoship added that it hoped the Houthis “will release our crew at the earliest opportunity”.
The Eternity C was the second ship to sink off Yemen this month after repeated attacks by Houthi militants with sea drones and rocket-propelled grenades. Another Greek-operated vessel, the Magic Seas, had gone down days earlier.
The strikes on the two vessels marked a revival of attacks on shipping by the Houthis, who hit more than 100 ships between November 2023 and December 2024 in what they said was a show of solidarity with the Palestinians in the war in Gaza.
Eternity C’s crew and three armed guards were forced to abandon the ship following the attacks. Ten of them were rescued by a privately led mission, while five more are feared dead.
On Monday, the Houthis released a six-minute video showing pictures of the missing seafarers, with some of them apparently talking to family members by phone.
They also showed testimonies saying that the crew members were not aware of a maritime ban by Houthis against vessels sailing to Israeli ports. They said the vessel was heading to Israel’s Eilat Port to load fertilizers.
Reuters could not independently verify the footage.
(Reporting by Renee Maltezou and Jonathan Saul;Editing by Helen Popper)
Comments