The global supply chain is under serious strain following the violent attacks by the Houthis on two ships of Greek interests in the Red Sea.
The new tactics employed by the Houthis — resembling organized naval warfare operations — caught Western naval forces unprepared, and in addition to the two ships, there have been four recorded fatalities among crew members.
And while everyone is waiting for the next move of the Houthis, all ships sailing through the Red Sea have their AIS turned off, while there have also been cases of ships indicating that they come from specific countries in order to avoid the next attack.
In this “violent scenario”, the Philippine authorities gave a different “ultimatum”. The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) has repeated its warning to shipowners and ship staffing companies crossing the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden to change the course of their ships or not to employ Filipino sailors on their ships. Given that the Filipino sailors are estimated to be more than 400,000, the global supply chain is at risk. But it is not only the Philippine authorities. And the Panhellenic Maritime Federation has called for the Red Sea region to be declared a war zone.
The new tactics
Sources involved in maritime security groups told “N” about the new method of attacks. “The crew was trapped. The security guards used over 800 bullets trying to repel the attack,” a representative said.
He also stressed that while the “Magic Sea” had already sunk, no vigilance measures had been taken by international forces in the area. The source, speaking to “N”, described a shocking battle for survival. As he stated, despite repeated calls for international help via Mayday signal, the “Eternity C” was under fire for five consecutive hours.
