Maritime Security News

Rescuers pulled three more crew members and a security guard alive from the Red Sea on Thursday, maritime security sources said, a day after Houthi militants sank the Greek ship Eternity C and said they were holding some of the crew still missing.It was the second Greek bulk carrier sunk this week by the Iran-aligned Houthi militia, shattering months of relative calm off Yemen's coast, the gateway to the Red Sea and a critical route for oil and commodities to the world.Many shipping companies have suspended voyages due to the fear of attack.

Rescuers pulled six crew members alive from the Red Sea after Houthi militants attacked and sank a second ship this week, while the fate of another 15 was unknown after the Iran-aligned group said they held some of the seafarers.The Houthis claimed responsibility for the assault that maritime officials say killed four of the 25 people aboard the Eternity C before the rest abandoned the cargo ship. Eternity C went down Wednesday morning after attacks on two previous days, sources…

A dawn ceremony has been held in Auckland, New Zealand, to commemorate the 40th Anniversary of the bombing of the original Rainbow Warrior.On July 10, 1985, French Government agents used two bombs to sink the Rainbow Warrior at Marsden Wharf in Auckland Harbour. It came at the height of the Greenpeace campaign to stop French nuclear testing in the Pacific.The ship was destroyed and one crewmember killed.Greenpeace tells the story:10 July 1985. The Greenpeace ship the Rainbow Warrior is moored in Auckland…

Greek shipping companies calling at Russian ports are boosting their vessels' defences after a series of mysterious blasts in recent months have damaged tankers linked to Moscow's oil trade according to six Greek shipping and security sources.The measures include underwater inspections by divers to check for foreign objects, two of the Greek sources familiar with the strategy said.Western countries have hit Russia with waves of sanctions over its war in Ukraine and the Group of Seven major powers has separately imposed a price cap of $60 a barrel on Moscow's oil exports…

The laying ceremony of the first of the two new-generation FREMM “EVOLUTION” (“FREMM EVO”) Frigates for the Italian Navy took place today at the Fincantieri shipyard in Riva Trigoso. The delivery of the unit is scheduled for 2029.The ceremony was attended by Fulvio Palermo, Head of Project Management for the Naval Vessels Department, and Antonio Quintano, Director of the Integrated Plant in Riva Trigoso-Muggiano, in the presence of representatives of the Italian Navy, Orizzonti Sistemi Navali…

Israel has attacked Houthi targets in three Yemeni ports and a power plant, the Israeli military said early on Monday, marking the first Israeli attack on Yemen in almost a month.The strikes on Hodeidah, Ras Isa and Salif ports, and Ras Qantib power plant were due to repeated Houthi attacks on Israel, the military added.Hours after the strikes, the Israeli military said two missiles were launched from Yemen and attempts were made to intercept them, but the results of interception…

Japan will export used navy destroyers to the Philippines to strengthen its deterrence against China's maritime expansion, the Yomiuri newspaper reported on Sunday, as the two U.S. allies increase cooperation to counter Beijing.The export plan involves six Abukuma-class destroyer escorts in service with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force for more than three decades, the Japanese daily said, citing multiple unnamed government sources.Defence ministers Gen Nakatani and Gilberto Teodoro agreed to the destroyer export when they met in Singapore last month…

The crew of a ship set on fire in an attack in the Red Sea on Sunday abandoned the vessel and were rescued as it took on water, a British maritime agency said, in an assault that private security firm Ambrey said resembles that of the Houthi militant group.The attack, off the southwest coast of Yemen, was the first such incident reported in the vital shipping corridor since mid-April.Maritime security sources said the vessel, which they identified as the Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned bulk carrier Magic Seas, had taken on water after being hit by sea drones.

The Iranian military loaded naval mines onto vessels in the Persian Gulf last month, a move that intensified concerns in Washington that Tehran was gearing up to blockade the Strait of Hormuz following Israel's strikes on sites across Iran, according to two U.S. officials.The previously unreported preparations, which were detected by U.S. intelligence, occurred some time after Israel launched its initial missile attack against Iran on June 13, said the officials, who requested…

Russian warships and coastal missile systems struck simulated maritime targets with cruise missiles during exercises in the Sea of Japan, TASS state news agency reported on Monday, citing Russia's defense ministry.The ships and missiles systems, all part of Russia's Pacific Fleet forces, "carried out a joint missile strike against a complex target setup in the Sea of Japan, simulating enemy ships", TASS cited the ministry's statement as saying."All targets were successfully hit."The Fleet's flagship…

Vessels near the Strait of Hormuz have been broadcasting unusual messages concerning nationality in a bid to avoid being attacked as doubts linger over the ceasefire between Israel and Iran, according to maritime risk analytics firm Windward and ship tracking data on Thursday.The signals have been used since conflict broke out between Israel and Iran early this month, which led the U.S. to strike Iranian nuclear sites.U.S. President Donald Trump brokered a ceasefire after 12 days of war but the maritime threat remains elevated…

Leaders of the four biggest Pacific Islands nations have delayed adopting a joint security strategy that could provide an opening for Beijing, against a backdrop of increasing rivalry between China, Australia and the United States in the Pacific Ocean.The Melanesian Spearhead Group, which includes Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and Fiji, had been negotiating its first joint security framework, focused on maritime security.A meeting of the group's leaders on Monday in Fiji delayed a decision…

Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi movement will likely be a persistent problem for the U.S. in the future, a senior U.S. military official said on Tuesday, even after Washington and the Houthis reached an agreement last month that ended a U.S. air campaign against the group."The Houthis are likely to be a persistent problem... that we'll be dealing with in the future a few times again," Air Force Lieutenant General Alexus Grynkewich, director for operations of the Joint Staff, told lawmakers. Grynkewich has been nominated to lead the U.S.

The General Directorate of Merchant Marine (DGMM) of the Panama Maritime Authority (PMA) has issued a series of warnings to Panamanian-flagged vessels due to rising tensions in the Middle East, through Maritime Notice MMN-04/2025.The DGMM highlighted the security risks faced by vessels operating near Iran, Israel, the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, and the Strait of Hormuz, as a result of the ongoing regional conflict, which could directly impact ships and their crews.The PMA…

Ethical Farming Ireland has joined 21 other NGOs calling on EU Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare Olivér Várhelyi to suspend all shipments of livestock to Israel following the escalation in conflict with Iran.The call comes after a missile struck Haifa close to a livestock carrier from Portugal carrying 8,000 sheep and hundreds of young bulls.The organization recounts first-hand experience from Israel Against Live Shipments volunteers where port workers and truck drivers…

A Yemeni Houthi official said on Sunday that the Iran-aligned group's response to the U.S. attack on Iran was "only a matter of time."Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a member of the Houthi movement's political bureau, told Al Jazeera Mubasher TV that its ceasefire deal with Washington was before the "war" on Iran.The group has been launching attacks on shipping lanes and Israel in what it says is in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza during the Israeli war. It agreed on a ceasefire deal with the United States in May to stop attacking U.S.

The Dutch city of The Hague will host the NATO summit next week, with tight security in place as it welcomes around 6,000 delegates and world leaders from 32 countries, including U.S. President Donald Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron, and U.K.

Starting with a few training sessions back in 2015, the EU Seaport Cooperation Project (SEACOP) has led to enhanced maritime security by combating illicit trafficking at sea in the region.Deployed across three strategic regions affected by maritime trafficking, Latin America, the Caribbean and West Africa, SEACOP, it is now a cornerstone of the region’s maritime security efforts, helping national authorities from 13 countries tackle transnational illicit trafficking through intelligence sharing…

Israeli forces have taken command of a charity vessel that had tried to break a naval blockade of the Gaza Strip and the boat with its crew of 12 including activist Greta Thunberg is now heading to a port in Israel, officials said on Sunday.The British-flagged yacht Madleen, which is operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), was aiming to deliver a symbolic amount of aid to Gaza later on Monday and raise international awareness of the humanitarian crisis there.However…

Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles on Saturday urged greater transparency from China over its military modernisation and deployments as Pacific nations brace for a more assertive Chinese presence.Speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue defence meeting in Singapore, Marles said that while China remains an important strategic partner to Australia, more open communication between the two nations is key for a "productive" relationship."When you look at the growth in the Chinese military that has happened without a strategic reassurance…

International nonprofit organisation Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) said one of its vessels left the Italian port of Catania on Sunday, heading for Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid, after a previous attempt failed due to a drone attack on a separate ship in the Mediterranean.The crew of volunteers, including climate activist Greta Thunberg and Irish actor Liam Cunningham, set sail on the Madleen, carrying barrels of what the group called "limited amounts, though symbolic" of relief supplies.Another vessel operated by the group…

The European Union on Wednesday proposed creating a hub to boost security in the Black Sea by gathering information from multiple countries to monitor the strategically important region more closely.The move comes as European officials warn about a continued threat from Russia and as concerns deepen across the EU about risks to undersea infrastructure.The hub would be set up in the short-term and "with a sense of priority due to the Russian war of aggression," an EU document said.The hub will use contributions from Black Sea and EU countries and "enhance maritime situational awareness and info

Russia detained a Greek-owned oil tanker on Sunday after it left an Estonian Baltic Sea port, the Estonian Foreign Ministry said, adding it had alerted NATO allies to the incident.The Liberia-flagged ship Green Admire was leaving Sillamae port using a designated navigation channel that crosses Russian territorial waters, the ministry said in a statement."This is definitely connected to the fact that we have started to harass Russia's shadow fleet," Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna told Estonian broadcaster ERR.