India-bound Cargo Ship Seized : Houthis in Red Sea

India-bound cargo ship seized by Houthis in Red Sea

A Cargo Ship from Turkey, on its way to India, was hijacked by Yemen’s Houthi rebels in the Red Sea on Sunday, reported the Associated Press. The vessel’s 25 crew members were taken hostage.

Israel said Yemen’s Houthi rebels seized an Israeli-linked Cargo Ship in a crucial Red Sea shipping route on Sunday, raising fears that regional tensions heightened over the Israel-Hamas war were playing out on a new maritime front.

Israel on Sunday said that Yemen’s Houthis had seized a British-owned and Japanese-operated Cargo Ship in the southern Red Sea, describing the incident as an “Iranian act of terrorism” with consequences for global maritime security.

Hijack India-bound Cargo Ship in Red Sea

Iran-backed Houthis said they took the Cargo Ship over its connection to Israel. They would continue to target ships linked to or owned by Israelis in international waters until the end of Israel’s war on Gaza, they said.

“The detention of the Israeli Cargo Ship is a practical step that proves the seriousness of the Yemeni armed forces in waging the sea battle, regardless of its costs,” said Mohammed Abdul-Salam, the Houthis’ chief negotiator and spokesperson. “This is the beginning.”

“The Cargo Ship departed Turkey on its way to India, staffed by civilians of various nationalities, not including Israelis,” the defence forces said. “It is not an Israeli Cargo Ship.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office condemned the hijacking as an “act of Iranian terrorism”.

“This constitutes a leap forward in Iran’s aggression against the citizens of the free world, with international consequences regarding the security of the global shipping lanes,” said Netanyahu’s office.

The prime minister’s office also stated that the Cargo Ship is owned by a British company and operated by a Japanese firm. However, public shipping database records show that the Cargo ship’s owner is associated to Ray Car Carriers, founded by Abraham “Rami” Ungar, one of the richest men in Israel, according to the Associated Press.

The hijacking came as Israel’s war on Gaza entered its seventh week. So far, over 13,000 Palestinians have been killed in the relentless air and ground strikes from Israeli forces, reported Al Jazeera. Tel Aviv’s actions are in response to an attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas on October 7, in which 1,200 Israelis died. The Houthis had earlier this month claimed responsibility for missile and drone attacks on Israel.

The Houthis said they had seized a Cargo ship in that area, but described it as Israeli. “We are treating the ship’s crew in accordance with Islamic principles and values,” a spokesperson for the group said, making no reference to the Israeli account.

There was no immediate comment from the Houthis, an Iran-backed rebel movement in Yemen that threatened earlier Sunday to target Israeli-linked vessels in the Red Sea. Last month, Houthi rebels were suspected of sending missiles and drones over the crucial shipping lane of the sea.

Cargo Ship on its way to India

Israel’s military denied the ship was Israeli. A statement by the army on X said: “The hijacking of a cargo ship by the Huthis near Yemen in the southern Red Sea is a very grave incident of global consequence.” “The cargo ship departed Turkey on its way to India, staffed by civilians of various nationalities, not including Israelis. “It is not an Israeli ship,” the Israeli army said in the statement.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said 25 crew members of various nationalities, including Bulgarians, Filipinos, Mexicans and Ukrainians but no Israelis, had been on board the hijacked Bahamas-flagged ship.

No Israelis on the Ship

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also denied the ship was Israeli but denounced, in a statement, “the Iranian attack against an international vessel”. “The ship, which is owned by a British company and is operated by a Japanese firm, was hijacked with Iran guidance by the Yemenite Huthi militia,” it said. “Onboard the vessel are 25 crew members of various nationalities including Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Filipino and Mexican,” it added.

Earlier on Sunday the Houthis said all ships owned or operated by Israeli companies, or carrying the Israeli flag could be targeted. Huthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a statement on X, that their “military forces will continue to carry out military operations against the Israeli enemy until the aggression against Gaza stops and the ugly crimes… against our Palestinian brothers in Gaza and the West Bank stop.”

Who Are Houthis?

The Houthis, an ally of Tehran, have been launching long-range missile and drone salvoes at Israel in solidarity with the Palestinian Hamas militants fighting in the Gaza Strip.

Last week, the Houthi leader said his forces would make further attacks on Israel and they could target Israeli ships in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. A U.S. Defense official said “we’re aware of the situation and are closely monitoring it”.

Bab Al-Mandab Strait

The Bab al-Mandab Strait is the narrow pass between Yemen and Djibouti at the foot of the Red Sea, one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes, which carries about a fifth of global oil consumption.

The Huthis, declaring themselves part of the “axis of resistance” of Iran-affiliated groups, have launched a series of drone and missile strikes targeting Israel since October, following an unprecedented attack by Hamas militants on Israel.

Analysts have said the goal of the rebels, who control Yemen’s capital Sanaa and much of the country, is strategic rather than military as they seek regional and domestic legitimacy.

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Netanyahu’s office condemned the seizure of the Galaxy Leader, a vehicle carrier, as an “Iranian act of terror.” The Israeli military called the hijacking a “very grave incident of global consequence.”

Satellite tracking data from MarineTraffic.com analyzed by the AP showed the Galaxy Leader traveling in the Red Sea southwest of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, more than a day ago. The vessel had been in Korfez, Turkey, and was on its way to Pipavav, India, at the time of the seizure reported by Israel.

Israeli officials insisted the ship was British-owned and Japanese-operated. However, ownership details in public shipping databases associated the ship’s owners with Ray Car Carriers, which was founded by Abraham “Rami” Ungar, who is known as one of the richest men in Israel.

Ungar told The Associated Press he was aware of the incident but couldn’t comment as he awaited details.

The complex world of international shipping often involves a series of management companies, flags and owners stretching across the globe in a single vessel.

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A ship linked to Ungar experienced an explosion in 2021 in the Gulf of Oman. Israeli media blamed it on Iran at the time.

It had its Automatic Identification System tracker, or AIS, switched off, the data showed. Ships are supposed to keep their AIS active for safety reasons, but crews will turn them off if it appears they might be targeted or to smuggle contraband, which there was no immediate evidence to suggest was the case with the Galaxy Leader.

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The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which provides warnings to sailors in the Persian Gulf and the wider region, put the hijacking as having occurred some 150 kilometers (90 miles) off the coast of Yemen’s port city of Hodeida, near the coast of Eritrea.

The Red Sea, stretching from Egypt’s Suez Canal to the narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait separating the Arabian Peninsula from Africa, remains a key trade route for global shipping and energy supplies. That’s why the U.S. Navy has stationed multiple ships in the sea since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7.

An American defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media, said US military officials were tracking an incident involving the Galaxy Leader after its alleged hijacking.

Since 2019, a series of ships have come under attack at sea as Iran began breaking all the limits of its tattered nuclear deal with world powers. As Israel expands its devastating campaign against Hamas in the besieged Gaza Strip following the militant group’s unprecedented attack on southern Israel, fears have grown that the military operations could escalate into a wider regional conflict.