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US Navy Helicopters Sink Three of Four Houthi Boats after Attack on Maersk in Red Sea

Houthi members aboard the hijacked ship “Galaxy Leader” in the port of Hodeidah last November (Houthi media)
Houthi members aboard the hijacked ship “Galaxy Leader” in the port of Hodeidah last November (Houthi media)
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US Navy Helicopters Sink Three of Four Houthi Boats after Attack on Maersk in Red Sea

Houthi members aboard the hijacked ship “Galaxy Leader” in the port of Hodeidah last November (Houthi media)
Houthi members aboard the hijacked ship “Galaxy Leader” in the port of Hodeidah last November (Houthi media)

US Navy helicopters sank three of four small boats used by Iranian-backed Houthi militants to attack a merchant vessel in the southern Red Sea on Sunday, US central command (CENTCOM) said on social media platform X.

Helicopters from the USS Eisenhower and USS Gravely, responding to distress calls from the Maersk Hangzhou , returned fire on the Houthi boats in self-defense and sank three of the vessels with no survivors.

According to Reuters, the fourth boat fled the area.

Danish shipping company Maersk confirmed that the crew onboard Maersk Hangzhou had reported a flash on deck on Dec 30 at around 1830 CET, when the vessel was 55 nautical miles southwest of Al Hodeidah.

The crew was safe and there was no indication of fire onboard the vessel that was fully manoeuvrable and continued its journey north to Port Suez, Maersk said.

The Houthi militants in Yemen have stepped up attacks on vessels in the Red Sea to show their support for Palestinian group Hamas fighting Israel in Gaza.

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EU’s Kallas Says She Hopes for Political Agreement on Easing Syria Sanctions

In this photograph taken on January 12, 2025, a vendor waits for customers at her mobile shop in the Damascus Tower market, which specializes in the smart phone business, in the Syrian capital. (AFP)
In this photograph taken on January 12, 2025, a vendor waits for customers at her mobile shop in the Damascus Tower market, which specializes in the smart phone business, in the Syrian capital. (AFP)
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EU’s Kallas Says She Hopes for Political Agreement on Easing Syria Sanctions

In this photograph taken on January 12, 2025, a vendor waits for customers at her mobile shop in the Damascus Tower market, which specializes in the smart phone business, in the Syrian capital. (AFP)
In this photograph taken on January 12, 2025, a vendor waits for customers at her mobile shop in the Damascus Tower market, which specializes in the smart phone business, in the Syrian capital. (AFP)

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on Wednesday she hopes a political agreement on easing Syria sanctions can be reached at a gathering of European ministers next week.

EU foreign ministers will discuss the situation in Syria during a meeting in Brussels on Jan. 27.

European officials began rethinking their approach towards Syria after Bashar al-Assad was ousted as president by opposition forces led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group, which the United Nations designates as a terrorist group.

Some European capitals want to move quickly to suspend economic sanctions in a signal of support for the transition in Damascus. Others have sought to ensure that even if some sanctions are eased, Brussels retains leverage in its relationship with the new Syrian authorities.

“We are ready to do step-for-step approach and also to discuss what is the fallback position,” Kallas told Reuters in an interview.

“If we see that the developments are going in the wrong direction, then we are also willing to put them back,” she added.

Six EU member states called this month for the bloc to temporarily suspend sanctions on Syria in areas such as transport, energy and banking.

Current EU sanctions include a ban on Syrian oil imports and a freeze on any Syrian central bank assets in Europe.