Retired Navy ship Cpt. Gene Moran examines the impact of vessels that forced to found alternate routes around the Red Sea due to Houthi attacks.
Mediterranean Shipping Co. (MSC) said one of its container ships was attacked Tuesday afternoon while transiting the Red Sea.
The Swiss-based company said its container ship MSC United VIII was attacked around 12:25 UTC while en route from King Abdullah Port, Saudi Arabia to Karachi, Pakistan.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militia also on Tuesday claimed to have fired missiles at the vessel, without saying it was struck.
“Currently, all crew are safe with no reported injuries and a thorough assessment of the vessel is being introduced,” MSC said in a statement. “Our first priority remains protecting the lives and safety of our seafarers, and until their safety can be ensured MSC will continue to reroute vessels booked for Suez transit via the Cape of Good Hope.”
SHIPPING GIANT TO RESUME RED SEA VOYAGES WITH OPERATION PROSPERITY GUARDIAN IN PLACE
An MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co SA container ship sails southbound through the Great Bitter Lake in Ismailia, Egypt, on Thursday, Dec. 21, 2023. (Stringer/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Attacks on vessels transiting the Red Sea have skyrocketed following Israel’s offensive against Hamas in response to the militant group’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel that left 1,200 dead and hundreds of others injured.
Major shipping companies, including Denmark-based giant Maersk, have been avoiding the Red Sea and sending their ships around Africa and the Cape of Good Hope, adding costs and delays.
Maersk said Sunday it was preparing to allow its vessels to resume sailing through the Red Sea, thanks to the start of a U.S.-led multinational naval operation to protect shipping from attacks by Houthi rebels.
Giant gantry cranes and off loading freighter in Haifa container port, Israel. (Planet One Images/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Later Tuesday, United States Central Command confirmed that USS Laboon and F/A-18 Super Hornets from the Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group, shot down twelve one-way attack drones, three anti-ship ballistic missiles, and two land attack cruise missiles in the Red Sea.
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Centcom says the missiles were fired by the Houthis over a 10-hour period which began approximately at 6:30 a.m. local time on Tuesday. There was no damage to ships in the area or reported injuries.
FOX Business’ Greg Wehner and Reuters contributed to this report.
