190th is the Charm: Houthi Sink 80,000-ton Bulk Carrier in Combined Arms Attack
As detailed in an On-the-Record Press Briefing by Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh Holds, the current count of Iranian-backed Houthi attacks in the Red Sea area since 19 November stands at over 190 incidents. Two of the latest were very successful.
Last week, the Yemen-based Houthis struck two cargo ships: the bulk carrier M/V Tutor (82,357 DWT), which is Liberian flagged, Greek-owned, and Filipino-operated as well as the M/V Verbena (20,518 DWT), which is Palauan flagged, Ukrainian-owned and Polish operated.
The June 12 attack on the Tutor resulted in severe flooding and damage to the engine room.
The guided-missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea (CG-58) responded to distress calls from the Tutor. Aircraft from the cruiser and partner forces helped evacuate 21 of 22 personnel from the vessel. This operation took place in the Red Sea and within range of Houthi weapons, making it a risky and complex operation, she said.
Iranian, Russian, and Chinese naval vessels were among the ships within response distance that did nothing to assist the Tutor, Singh noted.
Tutor was hit by “an unknown airborne projectile” after being hit in the stern by a drone boat, with one of her Filipino crew left missing and later confirmed deceased.
She was carrying an armed guard detachment which apparently shrugged off the drone boat– a converted local fishing craft– until it was too late.
An update from the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) office on Tuesday said that military authorities reported seeing debris and oil in the last known location of the Tutor and then sunk in position 14’19’N 041’14’E.
This is the second incident resulting in the death of mariners in the conflict, following the deaths of three crew members on the Barbados-flagged bulk carrier M/V True Confidence (29,104 GT), struck by a Houthi anti-ship missile in the Gulf of Aden in early March while carrying steel products and trucks from China to Jordan.
It is also now the second confirmed sinking in the conflict, following the Belize-flagged bulk carrier MV Rubymar (19,420 GT) which, hit by a Houthi anti-ship ballistic missile on 18 February 2024, was abandoned and subsequently sank in foul weather 12 days later. All 24 crew members of Rubymar were rescued and landed at Djibouti.
Meanwhile, Verbena, carrying cargo from Songkhla (Thailand) to Venice, was reportedly hit by two missiles, causing fires and extensive damage, which left one civilian mariner severely injured and later airlifted for medical treatment. The crew later abandoned the ship due to the inability to contain the fires.
Central Command in the past 72 hours since then has advised they have destroyed: two Houthi uncrewed surface vessels (USV) in the Red Sea, eight Houthi uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) in a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen, as well as four Houthi radars and one uncrewed surface vessel (USV) in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.
Shipping and mariner advocacy groups are calling for more action. Expect an increase in diversions around the Cape of Good Hope.
