Maersk delays Red Sea transits again after ship attacked twice

A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S will delay transits in the Red Sea for 48 hours after one of its container ships was attacked twice in the waters in under a day.

The Maersk Hangzhou suffered the attacks near Yemen while traveling from Singapore to Port Suez in Egypt, the company said Sunday. The vessel was hit by an unknown object in an initial strike on Saturday night and was then later targeted again when four boats fired on the vessel in an attempt to board, according to the company.

The US said the attacks were by Iranian-backed Houthis. It shot down two anti-ship ballistic missiles launched by the rebels on Saturday. In the Sunday attack, its Navy helicopters took fire and responded by sinking three of the four boats manned by Houthi rebels and killed the crew onboard, according to a US Central Command post on X.

Maersk only recently starting sailing through the waterway again after diverting its ships to Africa. It said its crew on Maersk Hangzhou are safe and the ship has resumed its transit north.

“Maersk is currently working to ascertain the full details of the incident and is in close dialogues” with authorities to assess the security level in the area, according to an e-mailed statement.