Greece has dispatched a powerful salvage vessel to the Red Sea in response to a spike in maritime attacks by Yemen’s Houthi militants, including the recent sinkings of two Greek-operated cargo ships.
The deployment comes as part of emergency measures to protect seafarers and safeguard global trade routes, Greek shipping minister Vassilis Kikilias announced Thursday.
The ship, Giant, was provided by the Hellenic Association of Tugboat Owners and is crewed by 14 Greeks.
This move follows the back-to-back sinkings of Magic Seas and Eternity C—Liberia-flagged, Greek-operated bulkers—both targeted by Houthi forces earlier this month. All crew from Magic Seas were safely rescued, but the Eternity C tragedy has cast a shadow over the maritime community. Of its crew, 10 were rescued, five are feared dead, and another 10 are reportedly being held by Houthi militants.
The EU naval mission Aspides, tasked with Red Sea maritime security, reportedly had no assets in the area at the time of either incident.
The attacks mark a renewed escalation by the Houthis, who had conducted more than 100 maritime strikes between November 2023 and December 2024, framing the campaign as a show of solidarity with Palestinians during the Gaza conflict.
The announcement coincides with another troubling development: the brief detention of the Greek managed Merinos Livestock, a 49-year-old, 2,200 dwt ship, near Yemen yesterday. The vessel, sailing from Bossaso, Somalia, to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, went dark after switching off its AIS transponder—a factor that may have triggered its intercept by what sources believe to be the Yemeni Coast Guard. Reports indicate a wooden boat fired small arms and forced the Merinos Livestock to divert toward Mocha port. It was later released without formal charges.