The U.S. Navy has destroyed boats operated by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels after an attempted hijacking of a commercial vessel in the Red Sea on Sunday (December 31, 2023).
Helicopters from USS Eisenhower and USS Gravely responded to the threat following a distress call from the Singapore-flagged and Danish operated Maersk Hangzhou.
In a statement, U.S. Central Command (Centcom) said four Houthi boats attacked the Hangzhou at around 03:30 GMT with mounted weapons, getting to within proximity of the container ship which the rebels “attempted to board.”
The Hangzhou’s crew issued a distress call and an onboard security team returned fire. Responding to their call for help, U.S. Navy helicopters were shot at by the rebels while “in the process of issuing verbal calls to the boats.”
The helicopters “returned fire in self-defense, sinking three of four small boats, and killing the crews” while the fourth boat “fled the area”, Centcom said. No damage had been recorded to U.S. personnel or equipment.
It was the second attack on the Hangzhou in less than 24 hours, after it was attacked with missiles late on Saturday. The U.S. Navy’s response was the first defensive strike since the announcement of Operation Prosperity Guardian, a multinational international maritime security coalition created in response to Houthi attacks in the Red Sea.
The Operation aims to protect shipping in the Red Sea – one the world’s most important routes for energy and consumer cargoes. It is a key oil supply artery between Europe, the Middle East and Asia via the Suez Canal accounting for over 10% of global sea seaborne crude, according to maritime services and information provider Lloyd’s Register.
Any ship or oil tanker passing through the Suez Canal to or from the Indian Ocean has to transit this way navigating the Bab al-Mandab Strait – a 20 mile-wide sea channel at the southern tip of the Red Sea between Djbouti and Yemen – where majority of the Houthi attacks have happened.
The targets of Houthi attacks are ships purportedly heading to Israel. Following an escalation of hostilities between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, the Houthis came out in support of the latter. But the waves of attacks have of late become more indiscriminate in nature against largely foreign-owned vessels.
As part of Operation Prosperity Guardian, U.S. navy warships have joined vessel fleets and personnel from the U.K., Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, Greece, Netherlands, Norway and Seychelles. France, Italy, Spain and India are also independently patrolling the maritime corridor.
The attack on the Hangzhou was the 23rd attempted strike on an international shipping vessel since mid-November, and first since the launch of the international maritime security operation on December 19, according to Centcom data.
The Hangzhou is “reportedly seaworthy and there are no reported injuries” on board. However, international shipping company A.P. Moller Maersk – the ship’s operator – says it has paused transit in the Red Sea for 48 hours as a precautionary measure.