Following an attack by Iran-backed Houthi militia in Yemen, a merchant ship is in danger of sinking in the Red Sea.
Following the evacuation of the crew, the ship was drifting unmanned off the coast of Djibouti and sinking, the British authority responsible for the safety of merchant shipping, UKMTO, said on Saturday.
A heavily damaged cargo ship had already sunk at the beginning of March following a Houthi attack.
According to the US Central Command, the Houthi militia attacked the ship with two cruise missiles on Thursday. The Ukrainian-owned cargo ship Verbena, which is operated by a Polish company, was on its way to Italy with building materials on board.
The attack caused a fire. Initially, a seriously injured sailor was evacuated.
A Houthi military spokesman confirmed that the militia had attacked the Verbena.
The crew brought the fire under control and continued their journey to the next scheduled stop for the time being, UKMTO had said. But the crew was then brought to safety and the ship was left to its fate.
In early March, the Rubymar, a badly damaged cargo ship sank off the coast of Yemen, almost two weeks after an attack by the Houthi militia.
The US military warned of an environmental disaster because the vessel was carrying around 41,000 tons of fertilizer.
One of the most important shipping routes for world trade runs through the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea. In recent months, the Houthis have repeatedly attacked civilian cargo ships there.
The militants have said the attacks are intended to support Palestinian militant group Hamas by making it more difficult for cargo ships to reach Israel.
In response to the attacks, the United States and the United Kingdom have carried out several military strikes against Houthi positions in Yemen.
