Search called off for crew of Houthi-hit ship, maritime agencies say

ATHENS – Maritime agencies Diaplous and Ambrey said on July 13 that they had ended their search for the remaining crew of the Eternity C cargo ship that was

attacked by Yemen’s Houthi militants last week

.

The decision was made at the request of the vessel’s owner, both agencies said.

The Liberia-flagged, Greek-operated Eternity C sank in the Red Sea on the morning of July 9 following attacks over two consecutive days, according to sources at security companies involved in the rescue operation.

Ten of the ship’s complement of 22 crew and three guards

were rescued

. The remaining 15 are considered missing, including five who are believed to be dead, maritime security sources said. The Houthis said they had rescued some of the crew.

The crew included 21 Filipinos and one Russian. Three armed guards were also on board, including one Greek and one Indian, who were both rescued.

“The decision to end the search has been taken by the vessel’s owner reluctantly but it believes that, in all the circumstances, the priority must now be to get the 10 souls safely recovered alive ashore,” maritime risk management firm Diaplous and British security firm Ambrey said in a joint statement.

The Houthis also claimed responsibility for a similar assault in July targeting another ship, the Magic Seas. All crew from the Magic Seas were rescued before it sank.

The strikes on the two ships marked a resumption of a campaign by the Iran-aligned fighters who attacked more than 100 ships from November 2023 to December 2024 in what they said was solidarity with the Palestinians.