The UK-owned Belize-flagged bulk carrier, M/V Rubymar, faced a Yemini military attack on February 18 in the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait, linking the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
The vessel sank in the Red Sea due to stormy weather on a late Friday. US Central Command confirmed the sinking and released an image of the vessel going under.
However, Houthi leaders now accuse UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, holding him accountable for the ship’s assault. Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, from Yemen’s Supreme Political Council, shocked the world on ‘X’ by blaming Sunak and the UK government.
The Houthi leadership extends an opportunity to Sunak to rescue the Rubymar vessel. Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebel group on Sunday (March 3) said that ‘We will continue to strike British ships in the Gulf of Aden after UK-owned vessel Rubymar sunk in the Red Sea’, said Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebel group.
“Yemen will continue to sink more British ships, and any repercussions or other damages will be added to Britain’s bill,” Hussein al-Ezzi, deputy foreign minister in the Houthi-led government, said in a post on X.
The US military on Saturday confirmed that Rubymar had sunk after being hit by an anti-ship ballistic missile launched by Houthi militants in February.
The crew onboard was immediately evacuated after the attack by the Iran-backed militant group.
Rubymar was loaded with over 41,000 tonnes of fertiliser at the time it was attacked, causing an 18-mile (29km) oil slick in the sea.
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