Houthi rebels claim missile attack on Dutch cargo ship in Gulf of Aden, call it response to 'Gaza' genocide
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Houthi rebels claim missile attack on Dutch cargo ship in Gulf of Aden, call it response to 'Gaza' genocide")
Representational Image. Photograph: (Unsplash)
Houthi military spokesperson Brig Gen Yahya Saree said the attack involved a cruise missile targeting the vessel over alleged violations of “the entry ban to the ports of occupied Palestine” by the owners of the ship, Amsterdam-based Spliethoff.
The Houthi rebels of Yemen have claimed responsibility on Wednesday (Oct 1, 2025) for a missile strike that occurred on Monday targeting the Dutch-flagged cargo ship Minervagracht in the Gulf of Aden. The attack marks one of the major assaults by Houthi rebels on any shipping outside the Red Sea since November 2023.
According to a report in the news agency Associated Press, Houthi military spokesperson Brig Gen Yahya Saree stated that the attack involved a cruise missile targeting the vessel over alleged violations of “the entry ban to the ports of occupied Palestine” by the owners of the ship, Amsterdam-based Spliethoff.
As per the Times of Israel, the rebels claimed that the attack was in retaliation for what they term 'genocide' and starvation inflicted by the 'Zionist enemy' against our people in Gaza, and to reinforce the ongoing blockade on Israeli maritime traffic in the Red and Arabian Seas.
The attack left two crew members injured and forced the evacuation of all 19 sailors, hailing from the Philippines, Russia, Sri Lanka, and Ukraine, after the vessel caught fire and was left drifting, the European naval force operating in the region, Operation Aspides, confirmed.
Attacks disrupt maritime traffic in the Red Sea
The US Navy-led Joint Maritime Information Centre initially confirmed that the Minervagracht had no Israeli connections but later said it was “reviewing vessel affiliations for possible links to Israel”. The incident underscores the Houthis’ expanding campaign on maritime routes, which has already struck more than 100 vessels as part of their response to the Gaza conflict.
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Their several attack were not directly linked to Israel; however, the strikes have disrupted maritime traffic in the Red Sea. This trade route carried nearly $1 trillion goods annually before the war. Over the past two years, at least eight mariners were killed and four ships were sunk.
Monday’s attack points to the group’s growing reach in the Gulf of Aden, well beyond their traditional Red Sea operations. It also comes against the backdrop of renewed Israeli ground offensives in Gaza and fresh UN sanctions on Iran, further inflaming regional tensions.
