A ship was abandoned and then sunk after it was subjected to multiple rocket-propelled-grenade attacks near the Bab Al Mandeb, the 20.7km wide waterway between Africa and Arabia. The name “Bab Al Mandeb” is commonly translated into English as “the Gate of Tears,” or “the Gate of Grief”. The attack began on on Sunday 06 July.
Four to eight small craft, at least two drones, small arms fire, multiple RPG attacks, and small arms fire were reported in the attack against the ultramax dry bulker Magic Seas (IMO: 9736169). The 2016-built Magic Seas is a Liberia flagged bulker, with a length overall of just under 200 metres, a width of 32.26 metres, four geared cranes, and of a gross tonnage of 35,812 tons with a deadweight of at 63,0oo tonnes. The vessel was managed by Stem Shipping of Greece. The vessel has been reported by the UK Maritime Trade Operations as being struck by two Unmanned Surface Vessels (i.e. remotely controlled surface watercraft (drones)) and at least one missile. The vessel was badly damaged leading to fires and flooding, and the crew abandoned ship. The vessel later sank after approximately eight sub-waterline explosions were carried out, apparently by Houthis.
The vessel was reportedly en-route from the seaport of Zhuhai, China, to Turkey and was said to be carrying a cargo of iron ore and fertilizer.
John Xylas, chairman of Intercargo, the international trade association for the dry bulk shipping industry, commented on the attack: “we are deeply shocked by the attack on the Magic Seas and our thoughts are with the crew. These are innocent people, simply doing their jobs, keeping global trade moving. No one at sea should ever face such violence. The safety of seafarers must come first. We urge all relevant authorities to act decisively to protect those at sea and uphold international law. INTERCARGO stands firmly with our members and all those affected.”
The Magic Seas was likely targeted for attack because of previous port calls in Israel, the Joint Maritime Information Centre commented. The JMIC is the information outlet of the 40 plus coalition of naval forces that patrol the waters of the Middle East and the Arabian Sea. Independent maritime security analysts, Neptune P2P, concurred with that assessment, noting that such attacks were consistent with Houthi warnings that they [the Houthi] would target ships with links to Israel. Neptune P2P noted that the Magic Seas had previously visited the Israeli seaport of Ashdod in December 2023.
Maritime security consultant, Ambrey, assesses Israel-affiliated vessels to be at high-risk; that US, UK, and allied-affiliated vessels may face heightened risk during transit if their states participate in military action against the Houthis or Iran, and that other merchant shipping is at low risk.
Ami Daniel, CEO of maritime risk analytics firm, Windward, notes that in the last six months, around 1,113 vessels have made Israel-port calls and that over 15,000 other ships have been commercially managed by companies that operate ships that have called at Israeli ports. “Or, in other words, about 1/6 [of the] vessels in the world fleet is directly threatened by the Houthis as of today,” he wrote in a statement.
Meanwhile, it has been reported in trade media earlier this week that shipping companies have been unable to secure insurance to transit through the Red Sea for vessels that have previously made Israeli port calls.
Timeline of the attack on the Magic Seas
The following timeline was sourced from the UK Maritime Trade Operations centre:
1401 UTC (15:04 AEST) on Sunday 06 July, the ship had been struck by “unknown projectiles” resulting in a fire onboard, and the embarked security team was engaging in a firefight with attackers in multiple small vessels who had attacked with small arms fire and RPGs, a company security officer reported to UK naval forces. The attack took place at about 51 nautical miles southwest of Al Hudaydah, Yemen.
1503 UTC – the vessel was taking on water at the position 1553N 04142E and the crew were preparing to abandon ship, the UK naval forces were advised by the Company Security Officer.
1553 UTC – the crew had abandoned ship. The vessel was out of command and adrift at 1457N 04139E, UK naval forces were advised.
1900 UTC – the crew were rescued by a passing merchant ship and were reported to be well and safe. The vessel was reported to be abandoned and unlit. The rescuer was identified as the Marshall Islands flagged boxship Safeen Prism (IMO: 9603611); the crew of the Magic Seas were taken to Djibouti for repatriation.
How Houthis attacked and sank the Magic Seas
A video later released by the Houthis shows aerial footage of the vessel. A voice, which claims to be from the Yemeni naval forces, then repeatedly hails the vessel in English. The voice orders the Captain of the ship to decrease speed and then stop the ship “immediately” for crew safety, otherwise you [the Captain] “will bear responsibility”.
Under the Article 17 of the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea, commercial ships engaging in peaceful commerce enjoy the right of innocent passage, which means that ships can travel through the territorial sea of coastal states, provided that the vessel’s passage is “innocent” i.e. not prejudicial to the peace, good order, or security of the coastal state. There is no suggestion that the Magic Seas was doing anything that could be regarded as prejudicial.
A radio response, apparently from the ship, says that the ship is engaged in lawful passage and requests that the Yemenis do not impede the ship’s passage. The Captain of the ship did not comply with the Yemeni orders.
Yemeni media then shows, apparently from the perspective of a small fast watercraft, shows a four-crane vessel on the horizon. There is an explosion on the vessel that results in a large black plume of smoke, which is accompanied by the sounds of gunfire. A voice, identifying itself as the Magic Seas issues a Mayday call. Further Houthi footage shows hooded, armed, personnel carrying out military manoeuvres aboard the vessel; they run onto the bridge but there is no-one there and the bridge alarms are ringing.
The video then shows a vessel at sea, with the words “Magic Seas” clearly stencilled on the bow. There are then what appears to be approximately eight explosions from at or just under the waterline around the ship – one at the bow, one at the stern, and three each evenly spaced on the port and starboard sides. Further imagery shows the vessel slipping under the surface of the sea.
