At around 8 pm local time on December 30, the Maersk Hangzhou was attacked in the Red Sea.
Shockingly, less than 10 hours later, at around 06:30 in the morning on December 31, the ship was attacked again by the Houthi armed forces!
“Four small boats from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen approached the Maersk Hangzhou within 20 meters. They carried weapons and tried to board the ship.”
After the Maersk sent a second distress call, a U.S. Navy helicopter arrived to assist:
U.S. Central Command said in a statement that after receiving a distress signal from a Maersk Line container ship,
Helicopters dispatched by the US Navy aircraft carrier USS Eisenhower and destroyer USS Graveley launched a self-defense counterattack against the Houthi armed small boat.
Three of them were sunk, and no one survived.
On December 31, 2023 local time, Yahya Saraya, spokesman for the Houthi armed forces in Yemen, issued a statement saying,
While performing their “maritime mission”, the Houthi armed forces were attacked by the US military, resulting in the death or disappearance of 10 maritime armed personnel.
The second Houthi attack on the Maersk Hangzhou was confirmed by Maersk.
Maersk said the crew were safe and there were no signs of fire on the ship, which was fully controllable and continued north to the Port of Suez.
Maersk also said it would suspend all its ships from passing through the Red Sea within 48 hours.
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