The group's military spokesman, Yahya Saree, said in a video statement that "the Yemeni armed forces targeted the ship (ETERNITY C) while it was heading to the port of Umm al-Rashrash (Eilat) in occupied Palestine with an unmanned boat and six cruise and ballistic missiles."
The spokesman added that the operation led to the "complete sinking of the ship," noting that the operation was "documented with audio and video." He stated that an unspecified number of the targeted ship's crew members were rescued, provided with medical care, and transported to a safe location.
The spokesman did not reveal the number of people on board the ship, or whether there were any casualties. He also did not provide any information about the ship's owner or operator, but the Associated Press reported that it was registered under the Liberian flag.
Meanwhile, the US State Department condemned the killing of three sailors in an attack launched by the Yemeni Houthi group on two commercial vessels in the Red Sea on Monday.
"The United States condemns the unprovoked Houthi attack on the civilian cargo ships MV Magic Seas and Eternity Sea in the Red Sea," State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said in a statement Tuesday evening.
She added that the attack "resulted in the tragic loss of three sailors, the injury of several others, and the complete loss of the first vessel and its cargo," stressing that "the attacks demonstrate the ongoing threat posed by the Iran-backed Houthi groups to freedom of navigation and regional economic and maritime security."
Bruce stated that the United States will continue to take necessary measures to protect freedom of navigation and commercial shipping from Houthi attacks, "which must be condemned by all members of the international community."
On Tuesday evening, the Houthi group said it is committed to freedom of navigation in the Red Sea "for everyone except Israel and those who support it," according to a statement by Mahdi al-Mashat, head of the Houthi Supreme Political Council, published by the group's Saba News Agency.
Al-Mashat called for "avoiding dealings with the assets of the Zionist entity (Israel)," vowing that the group's "growing and disciplined forces will continue their operations with the aim of halting the aggression and lifting the siege on Gaza in accordance with international conventions."
The Houthis affirm their commitment to continuing their attacks on Israel until it ends its 21-month-long war of extermination against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Since October 7, 2023, Israel has been waging genocide in Gaza, including killing, starvation, destruction, and forced displacement, ignoring all international calls and orders from the International Court of Justice to halt it.
The genocide, backed by the United States, left more than 195,000 Palestinians dead or wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 10,000 missing. Hundreds of thousands were displaced, and a famine claimed the lives of many, including dozens of children.
