WASHINGTON: A cargo ship deserted within the Gulf of Aden after an assault by Yemeni rebels is taking up water and has left an enormous oil slick, in an environmental catastrophe that US Central Command mentioned Friday might worsen.Rubymar, a Belize-flagged, British-registered and Lebanese-operated cargo ship carrying flamable fertilizer, was broken in a Sunday missile strike claimed by the Iran-backed Huthi rebels.Its crew was evacuated to Djibouti after one missile hit the aspect of the ship, inflicting water to enter the engine room and its stern to sag, mentioned its operator, the Blue Fleet Group.A second missile hit the vessel’s deck with out inflicting main harm, Blue Fleet CEO Roy Khoury advised AFP.CENTCOM mentioned the ship is anchored however slowly taking up water and has left an 18 mile oil slick.”The M/V Rubymar was transporting over 41,000 tons of fertilizer when it was attacked, which could spill into the Red Sea and worsen this environmental disaster,” it mentioned in a publish on X, previously Twitter.The ship’s operator mentioned Thursday the ship may very well be towed to Djibouti this week.Khoury mentioned the ship was nonetheless afloat and shared a picture captured on Wednesday that confirmed its stern low within the water.When requested about the potential for it sinking, Khoury had mentioned there was “no risk for now, but always a possibility.”The assault on the Rubymar represents essentially the most vital harm but to be inflicted on a industrial ship for the reason that Huthis began firing on vessels in November — a marketing campaign they are saying is in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza through the Israel-Hamas warfare.The Huthi assaults have prompted some delivery corporations to detour round southern Africa to keep away from the Pink Sea, which usually carries about 12 p.c of worldwide maritime commerce.The UN Convention on Commerce and Growth warned late final month that the amount of business site visitors passing by the Suez Canal had fallen greater than 40 p.c within the earlier two months.
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