Greek ship attacked in Red Sea by Houthis arrives in Aden with cargo

LONDON/ADEN/ATHENS, Feb 20 (Reuters) - The Greek-flagged bulker Sea Champion arrived in the southern Yemeni port of Aden on Tuesday after being attacked in the Red Sea in what appeared to have been a mistaken missile strike by the Houthi militia, sources said.

Shipping risks are escalating due to repeated drone and missile strikes in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait by the Iran-aligned Houthis since November. U.S. and British forces have responded with several attacks on Houthi facilities but have so far failed to halt the attacks.

The Sea Champion, which was taking grain from Argentina to Aden, the seat of Yemen's internationally recognised government, was attacked twice on Monday, with a window damaged but no crew injuries, Greek shipping ministry sources said.

A port source in Aden and a separate shipping source said the vessel was discharging part of its cargo of some 9,229 tonnes in Aden before heading to the northern port of Hodeidah, an area controlled by the Houthis.

The port source in Aden, who declined to be identified, said the attack on the vessel was a mistake. A separate port source in Hodeidah, who also declined to be identified, said the Houthis informed them the attack was not intentional.

Houthi officials could not be immediately reached for comment.

The vessel's Athens based operator Mega Shipping and Greek shipping ministry officials declined to comment on the vessel's arrival.

The Sea Champion was anchored in Aden port with its last position updated at 1211 GMT, according to data from ship tracking and maritime analytics provider MarineTraffic.

The Houthis, who control Yemen's most populous regions, have attacked vessels with commercial ties to the United States, Britain and Israel, shipping and insurance sources say.

CONCERNS GROW OVER RUBYMAR

Despite Western attacks on them in Yemen, the Houthis have vowed to continue striking ships linked to Israel until attacks on Palestinians in the Gaza Strip stop.

Shipping sources said the Sea Champion, which had made grain deliveries in the past to Yemen, had U.S. ownership links.

So far, no ships have been sunk nor crew killed from the attacks in a sea lane accounting for about 12% of global maritime traffic.

Nonetheless, concerns were mounting over the fate of the Rubymar ship, which was hit by missiles in the Gulf of Aden on Sunday, despite the crew evacuating onto another ship.

In a maritime advisory seen by Reuters, commercial ships were cautioned to stay away from the area of the abandoned vessel amid fears it might sink.

A U.S. defense official said the vessel had not sunk.

Stephen Cotton, General Secretary of the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF), the leading union organisation for seafarers, said the Rubymar attack should be a wake up call "to immediately prioritise seafarers' safety, before we see human lives lost on the Red Sea."

He said an immediate, permanent Gaza ceasefire was a critical step to guaranteeing safe transit through the Red Sea.

There was also alarm that commercial ships could face new perils including the possibility of sea mines being deployed, maritime security sources said.

The U.S. military’s Central Command said on Feb. 17 it had conducted self defence strikes on various targets including one unmanned underwater vessel (UUV), which it said was "the first observed Houthi employment of a UUV since attacks began on Oct. 23”.

While many ships have opted to divert around southern Africa to avoid the Red Sea, some have continued to sail through.

French container shipping group CMA CGM said on Tuesday its Jules Verne vessel had transited the Red Sea under French naval escort, after suspending crossings for security risks earlier this month.

The European Union on Monday launched a naval mission to the Red Sea "safeguard freedom of navigation" there amid hopes of more protection and support for commercial shipping.

France has provided navy escorts in recent weeks for some shipping traffic including French-linked vessels.

(Reporting by Jonathan Saul in London, Mohammed Ghobari and Reyam Mukhashaf in Aden, Renee Maltezou in Athens and Maha El Dahan in Dubai; editing by William Maclean)