The big sudden incident, the merchant ship was sunk, and he set out from China

This is the first fatal attack on merchant ships in the Red Sea region since April, marking the renewed tension in the security situation on the route.

Since the outbreak of a new round of Pakistan-Israel conflict in October 2023, in order to support the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, Houthi armed forces have launched attacks on Israeli ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, and have repeatedly attacked targets in Israel with missiles and drones. Israel has launched multiple air strikes on the Houthi-controlled areas, and the situation in the Red Sea continues to be tense.

According to reports from the British Maritime Trade Organization (UKMTO), security company Ambrey, Yemen and many international media, from the afternoon to evening of July 6 local time, the "Magic Seas" ship was besieged by several small boats while sailing about 51 nautical miles southwest of Yemen Hodeida and Davis, and was hit by a suspected suicide sea unmanned boat, causing serious damage to the hull, water inlet and fire. The security personnel on the ship fought back, and the crew eventually abandoned the ship that night.

Sources from the Yemeni government's maritime department said the "Magic Seas" sank on the 7th. The freighter flew the Liberian flag and carried about 17,000 tons of ammonium nitrate. The ship was affiliated to Zhuhai, China in June.

According to data, the "Magic Seas" wheel, a dry bulk cargo ship, 200 meters long and 63,301 tons of dipton, was built in 2016 and flew the Liberian flag. The ship set sail from Gaolan Port, Zhuhai, China on June 11. Earlier, the ship had also joined Ulsan, Weifang and Lianyungang in South Korea. The ship departed from Zhuhai Port and entered the Gulf of Aden from the Indian Ocean. On July 3, it crossed the Mande Strait and entered the Red Sea. It was attacked while sailing northward.

Michael Bodouroglou, the operator of Magic Seas, described the incident: "It hit us like lightning. The ship was carrying iron and fertilizer from China to Turkey, and encountered a raid that lasted for more than four hours, including shootings of small boats and rockets, as well as attacks from drones and missiles at sea."

According to Ambrey, the attackers used small armed speedboats, light weapons, rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) and four explosive sea unmanned boats to carry out strikes - two of them successfully hit the hull, causing damage to the hull, cargo and fire, and the remaining two were destroyed. The attack lasted for about a few hours and was divided into three waves.

Although security personnel intercepted some of the attacks, the Magic Seas ship sank that night due to large amounts of water inflows, the crew abandoned the ship and escaped, and no casualties were reported. The UK Maritime Trade Operations Centre (UKMTO) informed the matter, and professional maritime security companies confirmed that the attack met Houthi armed merchant ship strike standards.

Yemeni officials revealed that the attacker had asked the ship to sail to an armed port but was rejected and then launched an attack.

Houthi armed forces spokesman Yehaiya Sareya issued a statement confirming that the Houthi naval, missile and drone forces carried out joint strikes on the "Magic Seas" cargo ship, saying that a total of two remote-controlled explosive boats, five ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and three drones were used, "directly hitting, causing water inlets in the hull." The Houthi forces allowed crews to evacuate safely, and the "Magic Seas" has now completely sunk to the bottom of the sea.

From November 2023 to January this year, Houthi forces attacked more than 100 merchant ships, two of which sank and four crew members died. The Houthi forces' actions also led to serious obstacles in the Red Sea shipping.