Attackers have seized an Israeli-linked tanker off the coast of Yemen
From
JON GAMBRELL Associated Press
November 26, 2023, 7:52 am ET
• 4 min reading
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Attackers seized an Israel-linked tanker off the coast of Yemen on Sunday, authorities said. Although no group immediately claimed responsibility, at least two other maritime attacks in recent days have been linked to the war between Israel and Hamas.
The attackers seized the Liberian-flagged Central Park in the Gulf of Aden, which is managed by Zodiac Maritime, the company and private intelligence agency Ambrey said. An American defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters, also confirmed to the Associated Press that the attack took place.
Zodiac called the seizure “a suspected piracy incident.”
“Our priority is the safety of our 22 crew members on board,” Zodiac said in a statement. “The Turkish-led ship has a multinational crew consisting of Russian, Vietnamese, Bulgarian, Indian, Georgian and Filipino nationals. The ship has a full load of phosphoric acid on board.”
Zodiac described the vessel as belonging to Clumvez Shipping Inc., although other records directly linked Zodiac as the owner. London-based Zodiac Maritime is part of Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer’s Zodiac Group. British company filings listed two men with the surname Ofer as current and former directors of Clumvez Shipping, including Daniel Guy Ofer, who is also a director at Zodiac Maritime.
It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack. Nearby Aden is held by forces allied with Yemen’s internationally recognized government and a Saudi-led coalition that has been fighting Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels for years. This part of the Gulf of Aden is theoretically under the control of these forces and lies quite far from Houthi-controlled territory in the country. Somali pirates are also not known to operate in this area.
The U.S. defense official said there appeared to be “an unknown number of unidentified armed individuals” who seized the ship.
“U.S. and coalition forces are nearby and we are closely monitoring the situation,” the official said.
Ambrey said it appears that “US naval forces are involved in the situation and have asked ships to stay away from the area.”
Zodiac Maritime has previously been targeted as part of a broader, years-long shadow war between Iran and Israel. In 2021, a drone strike that the United States and other Western nations believe was carried out by Iran killed two crew members aboard the Zodiac oil tanker Mercer Street off the coast of Oman.
The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which alerts sailors in the Middle East, had previously warned sailors that “two black and white boats carrying eight people in military clothing” had been spotted in the area. It issued another warning saying radio traffic suggested a possible attack had taken place before confirming the seizure.
According to the UKMTO, the ship was more than 60 kilometers (35 miles) south of the Yemeni coast, about 80 kilometers (50 miles) east of Djibouti and about 110 kilometers (70 miles) northeast of Somalia in the Gulf of Aden, a major shipping route .
The Central Park seizure came after a container ship, CMA CGM Symi, owned by another Israeli billionaire, was attacked by a suspected Iranian drone in the Indian Ocean on Friday. Iran has not admitted carrying out the attack or responded to questions from the AP about the attack.
Both Symi and Central Park had been behaving as if they were under threat in recent days.
According to MarineTraffic.com data analyzed by the AP, the ships had turned off their automatic identification system trackers. Ships are supposed to keep their AIS active for safety reasons, but crews turn it off if it appears they could be targeted. In the case of Central Park, the ship had last transmitted four days ago after leaving the Suez Canal south into the Red Sea.
The attacks come as global shipping is increasingly targeted in the weeks-long war that threatens to expand into a larger regional conflict – even as a ceasefire has halted fighting and Hamas is exchanging hostages for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
As the war between Israel and Hamas, which began with the Palestinian militant group’s Oct. 7 attack, raged on, the Houthis hijacked a vehicle transport ship in the Red Sea off Yemen. The Houthis did not immediately acknowledge the occupation of Central Park.