In a desperate attempt to evade the Iran-backed Houthi rebel missiles, commercial ships crossing the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab strait are broadcasting messages about their religion.
One of the ships broadcast a message on its AIS public tracking profile, claiming, "All crew Muslim". Another ship said they are an all-Chinese crew and management and went on to warn about armed guards aboard the vessel. Others clarified that they have no links to Israel, reported Reuters, citing MarineTraffic and LSEG ship-tracking AIS data.
🚨 BREAKING: Houthi rebels sink Greek-owned Magic Seas in Red Sea, release drone video showing RPG attack & explosives. Crew of 22 rescued. Today, they hit another Greek ship, Eternity C, killing 4 seafarers. Red Sea trade in chaos—how long will this threat to global shipping… pic.twitter.com/I5ywFjLJZc
— Greek City Times (@greekcitytimes) July 9, 2025
The Red Sea witnesses an annual movement of $1 trillion worth of goods being transported across Asia, Africa and Europe. This comes after the Houthis attacked and sunk two ships earlier this week. One of them was a Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned bulk carrier Eternity C, which was hit by rocket-propelled grenades fired from small boats on Monday. Ten crew members were rescued and at least three others were killed. The remaining survivors out of the total 25 crew members were kidnapped by the Houthis.
Another vessel targeted by the Houthis was also a Liberian-flagged Greek-operated cargo ship, Magic Seas. The Yemeni rebels claimed that company owning the ship "violated the entry ban to the ports of occupied Palestine." All 22 crew members were safely rescued by another merchant vessel.
More than 100 merchant ships have been targeted by the Houthis in the Red Sea since November 2023. The attacks in July are the first by the Houthis on ships since November 2024. This could force the US and European forces to launch retaliatory strikes, similar to US President Donald Trump's airstrike campaign against the Houthis in April.
