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Engine room already full: the leaky “Rubymar”

Photo: Yemeni Al-Joumhouriya TV / EPA-EFE

The deep-sea freighter “Rubymar,” which was attacked by Houthi militias last week, sinks in the Red Sea.

This is reported by the British Guardian, citing Yemeni media.

The “Rubymar” sails under the Belize flag and is carrying around 40,000 tons of fertilizer.

Last week, the American regional command Centcom published satellite images showing a 30-kilometer-long oil slick behind the ship.

The ship sprung a leak immediately after the missile attack.

Since then, there have been fears of an environmental catastrophe in the region.

The ship's engine room has apparently already filled with water.

The owner of the ship, the British shipping company Bluet Fleet Group, told Sky News that the US Navy had offered to tow the ship.

However, salvage negotiations are still ongoing.

Accordingly, consideration is apparently also being given to closing the leak on board the ship.

Last Sunday, the Houthis said they attacked and severely damaged a freighter with rockets in the Bab al-Mandab Strait at the southern entrance to the Red Sea.

The 127 meter long “Rubymar” was on its way to the port of Varna in Bulgaria.

The British Navy had informed about the attack and said that the crew had been brought to safety.

In Djibouti, the port authority subsequently reported that the crew had reached land safely.

The Iran-backed Houthi militia has been regularly attacking ships in the Red Sea since the war between Israel and the terrorist organization Hamas began in October.

This is why many shipping companies are now avoiding the important maritime trade route, through which twelve percent of global maritime trade is normally carried out.

The Houthis see themselves as part of the “axis of resistance” directed against Israel and supported by Iran, which includes Hamas and the Shiite militia Hezbollah in Lebanon.

In response to the Houthi attacks, US and British forces are carrying out attacks on the militia.

Germany has sent the frigate “Hessen” to the region to support this operation.

It has already shot down two Houthi militia drones.

lpz/AFP