Rescuers pulled six crew members alive from the Red Sea after Houthi militants attacked and sank a second ship this week, while the fate of another 15 remains unknown. 

The Houthis claimed responsibility for the assault that maritime officials say killed four of the 25 people aboard the Greek-operated Eternity C cargo ship. 

Eternity C went down Wednesday morning after it was attacked on two previous days, sources at security companies involved in a rescue operation said.

The six rescued seafarers spent more than 24 hours in the water, those firms said.

Footage released by the Houthis showed their attack on the vessel, showing the ship sinking after it was targeted.

The Houthis said they attacked the vessel because it was headed to Israel.  

The US Mission in Yemen accused the Houthis of kidnapping many surviving crew members from Eternity C and called for their immediate and unconditional safe release.

‘The Yemeni Navy responded to rescue a number of the ship’s crew, provide them with medical care, and transport them to a safe location,’ the group’s military spokesperson said in a televised address.

Rescuers pulled six crew members alive from the Red Sea after Houthi militants attacked and sank a second ship this week

The Houthis claimed responsibility for the assault that maritime officials say killed four of the 25 people aboard the Greek-operated Eternity C cargo ship

Crew members are shown in this screen grab being rescued after the attack 

The Houthis also have claimed responsibility for a similar assault on Sunday targeting another ship, the Magic Seas. All crew onboard were rescued before it sank.

Video footage of the first attack showed armed Houthis boarding the Magic Seas and setting off a series of explosions, causing it to sink.

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

In May, the US announced a surprise deal with the Houthis where it agreed to stop a bombing campaign against them in return for an end to shipping attacks, though the Houthis said the deal did not include sparing Israel.

Leading shipping industry associations, including the International Chamber of Shipping and BIMCO, denounced the deadly operation and called for robust maritime security in the region via a joint statement on Wednesday.

‘These vessels have been attacked with callous disregard for the lives of innocent civilian seafarers,’ they said.

‘This tragedy illuminates the need for nations to maintain robust support in protecting shipping and vital sea lanes.’

The Eternity C and the Magic Seas both flew Liberia flags and were operated by Greek firms. 

Some of the sister vessels in each of their wider fleets had made calls to Israeli ports in the past year, shipping data analysis showed.

A screen grab taken from a handout video released by the Houthis military media center on 09 July 2025 shows the Liberian-flagged bulker, Eternity C, sinking after being attacked in the Red Sea off the port city of Hodeidah, Yemen, 07 July 2025

Footage released by the Houthis showed their attack on the vessel

Yemen’s Houthis have claimed responsibility for the attack on the Greek-owned Eternity C with an explosive-laden remote-controlled boat and six hypersonic missiles in the Red Sea

The strikes on the two ships revive a campaign by the Iran-aligned fighters who had attacked more than 100 ships from November 2023 to December 2024

The six rescued seafarers spent more than 24 hours in the water

The Red Sea, which passes Yemen’s coast, has long been a critical waterway for the world’s oil and commodities

The Houthis stayed with the vessel until the early hours of Wednesday

Image shoes damage on the Eternity C vessel 

An explosion can be seen targeting the Eternity C vessel in the Red Sea 

Eternity C was first attacked on Monday afternoon with sea drones and rocket-propelled grenades fired from speed boats by suspected Houthi militants, maritime security sources said

‘We will continue to search for the remaining crew until the last light,’ said an official at Greece-based maritime risk management firm Diaplous.

The EU’s Aspides naval mission, which protects Red Sea shipping, confirmed in a statement that six people had been pulled from the sea.

The Red Sea, which passes Yemen’s coast, has long been a critical waterway for the world’s oil and commodities but traffic has dropped sharply since the Houthi attacks began.

Oil prices rose on Wednesday, maintaining their highest levels since June 23, also due to the recent attacks on ships in the Red Sea.

Eternity C was first attacked on Monday afternoon with sea drones and rocket-propelled grenades fired from speed boats by suspected Houthi militants, maritime security sources said. 

Lifeboats were destroyed during the raid. By Tuesday morning the vessel was adrift and listing.

Two security sources told Reuters that the vessel was hit again with sea drones on Tuesday, forcing the crew and armed guards to abandon it. 

The Houthis stayed with the vessel until the early hours of Wednesday, one of the sources said.

The Houthis were also shown boarding Magic Seas

Skiffs were in the area as rescue efforts were underway.

The crew comprised 21 Filipinos and one Russian. Three armed guards were also on board, including one Greek and one Indian, who was one of those rescued.

The vessel’s operator, Cosmoship Management, has not responded to requests for confirmation of casualties or injuries. If confirmed, the four reported deaths would be the first fatalities from attacks on shipping in the Red Sea since June 2024.

Greece has been in talks with Saudi Arabia, a key player in the region, over the latest incident, according to sources.