A ship sent sank in the Red Sea after an attack by Houthi militants, taking with it around 21,000 tonnes of fertiliser, posing an environmental threat to one of the world’s busiest waterways and home to many coral reefs.
The Ruthroughmar struck via an anti-ship ballistic missile fired through the Iranian-backed Houthis on Feb. 18 and sank early Saturday after “slowly taking on water” since the attack, U. S. Central Command said on social media Sunday morning local time.
“The approximately 21,000 tons of ammonium phosphate sulfate fertilizer carried by the ship pose an environmental threat in the Red Sea,” Centcom said, adding that the ship “also poses a threat of subsurface impact to other ships transiting the busy sea route. “rails of the Red Sea. ” waterway. “
The sinking of the ship “will cause an environmental disaster,” the Yemeni said in a separate statement.
Last month’s Houthi attack caused an 18-mile oil spill and forced the team to abandon ship. Djibouti’s Ports and Free Zones Authority, which coordinated the rescue of the Rubymar team members, said the fertilizer on board was classified as “very dangerous. “
This is believed to be the first time a shipment has been completely destroyed by a Houthi attack. For months, the Houthis have launched missiles and drones to attack advertisements and naval shipments crossing the Red Sea to protest Israel’s war in Gaza.
“Yemen will continue to sink more British ships, and any repercussions or damage will be added to the British bill,” Houthi Deputy Foreign Minister Hussein El-Ezzi wrote on X.
However, a spokesperson for the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said the Ruthroughmar is not a British ship, but operates through a Lebanese company, flies the flag of Belize and is owned by a company registered in the Marshall Islands.
“We have made clear that any attack on advertising shipping is unacceptable and that the UK and its allies reserve the right to respond appropriately,” said the spokesman, who also highlighted a major point of concern about the possible effects of the sinking on the environment.
Julien Jreissati, Greenpeace’s director for the Middle East and North Africa, called for an emergency response to gain “immediate access” to the site.
“In addition to any new fuel leakage from the engines, the sinking of the ship could further rupture the hull, allowing the water to come into contact with thousands of tons of fertilizer, which at that point could be dumped into the Red Sea and disappoint the Red Sea. ” Jreissati said.
“This disruption can have far-reaching consequences, affecting the species that depend on those ecosystems and, in turn, potentially impacting the very livelihoods of coastal communities. “
The Associated Press quoted Ian Ralthrough, founder of maritime security firm I. R. Consilium, as saying that there were “many ways” that the Red Sea could be traversed after the ship sank, noting that if the ship remains intact underwater, this will have an effect on the ship.
Ralby noted that the sea has a circular frame of water, adding, “What flows into the Red Sea stays into the Red Sea. »
The Ruthroughmar was en route to Belarus from the United Arab Emirates when it attacked, the Washington Post reported at the time. The British Army’s maritime publicity operations in the U. K. showed in an update on Saturday that “the ship has dragged the anchor. . . and came down the stern. “
The Houthis have said ships connected to Israel or heading to its ports are valid targets, and the United States and Britain have introduced several measures opposed to the organization in a bid to prevent attacks, which they do not appear to have prevented. Senior Houthi official Mohammed Ali al-Houthi criticized British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for the British for Israel and said Sunak was “responsible” for the ship’s fate.
He demanded that more humanitarian aid be allowed into Gaza.
Many giant ships – which account for about 12% of the entire global industry – have changed their routes to avoid the Red Sea in the face of the Houthi threat, opting instead for the long route around southern Africa.
Such diversions can increase transit time by up to a month, delaying the delivery of goods and further disrupting foreign industry, a sector already grappling with the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, emerging inflation, and disruptions caused by Russia’s war in Ukraine.
“With fewer and fewer container ships to attack, the risks of another spill with a large environmental impact have increased tremendously,” Ralby told the AP.
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CNN’s Victoria Bisset, Helier Cheung, Mohamad El Chamaa and Bryan Pietsch contributed to this report.