The Iberian-flagged cargo ship Eternity C which was sunk by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on July 9, 2025
HABARI DAILY I Kampala, Uganda I The Iran-allied Houthis militia in Yemen may be fighting a proxy war against Israel and the free world in the waters of the Red Sea.
The Houthi rebels released footage on Wednesday showing their deadly attack on the Eternity C cargo ship in the Red Sea, and its subsequent sinking. A similar video showed an attack on the Magic Seas, which was also sunk.
Maritime officials said Houthis killed four of the 25 people aboard the Eternity C before the rest abandoned the cargo ship.
Reports have shown that both ships took in water from holes along its waterline before sinking beneath the waves. During the heart wrecking process, the rebels were heard chanting: “God is the greatest; death to America; death to Israel; curse the Jews; victory to Islam.”
The rebels claimed that the vessels were headed for the Israeli port of Eilat, and that the attacks were in support of Palestinians in Gaza.
Early in the week, the Houthis said they hit the Magic Seas because its owner had done business with Israel and used its ports.
The rebels released a video showing masked gunmen storming the Magic Seas and simultaneous explosions that scuttled the bulk carrier. The Houthis say they are attacking ships to support Gaza amid the war there between Israel and the Hamas terror group.
They have also directly targeted Israel with ballistic missiles, especially during the recent 12-day, Israel-Iran war, and shortly after a ceasefire was announced.
Crew members from cargo ship Eternity C, which sank after being attacked, are seen at sea during a rescue operation, off Yemen
Although the Houthis said they attacked Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv with a ballistic missile, Israel’s air defense systems reportedly intercepted the missile before it reached the country.
Red Sea death trap
Reports say that the Houthis have targeted more than 100 ships with missiles and drones in the last two years, in a campaign the rebels describe as supporting Palestinians in the Gaza Strip during the Israel-Hamas war.
The Iranian-backed rebels stopped their attacks during a brief ceasefire in the war. They later became the target of an intense week long campaign of airstrikes ordered by US President Donald Trump, which ended with a ceasefire between the terror group and the US.
According to Tammy Bruce, the US State Department spokesperson, these attacks demonstrate the ongoing threat that Iran-backed Houthi rebels pose to freedom of navigation and to regional economic and maritime security.
“We will continue to take necessary action to protect freedom of navigation and commercial shipping from Houthi terrorist attacks,” he said in a recent interview.
The war in Gaza was triggered on October 7, 2023, when the Palestinian terror group Hamas led a devastating invasion of southern Israel in which 1,200 people were killed and 251 hostages taken. On the side was the 12-day Israel-Iran armed spat, where the former went against the Islamic state’s nuclear arsenal, which later drew in the United States of America.
