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Israeli-owned ship attacked by Iranian-made drone

5 months ago babelfish

Another Israeli-linked transport ship was targeted by Iranian-backed forces in the context of the Gaza war. A U.S. defense official was quoted by the Associated Press as describing that a container ship owned by an Israeli businessman was attacked Friday by an Iranian-made Shahed-136 drone.

Separately, pan-Arab satellite channel Al Mayadeen said an Israeli vessel had been targeted. The Maltese-flagged, French-operated CMA CGM Symi vessel was in international waters when the suicide drone armed with a bomb exploded in the vessel, causing damage but no injuries to crew members. Here is the ship:

The U.S. official quoted by the AP said “we continue to monitor the situation closely” but did not cite any specific evidence showing that Iran was behind the attack.

Maritime security company Ambrey said the vessel had sailed from a port in the United Arab Emirates and soon the vessel's tracking signal went offline. “The vessel was operated by a company affiliated with Israel, and this was considered the reason why it was targeted,” the security company said in a statement.

Regarding ties to Israel, The Times of Israel has learned that “The ship, its cargo, its operating company and its points of departure and destination do not appear to have any clear connection to Israel. Rather, Symi is leased to CMA CGM by Singapore-based Eastern Pacific Shipping, a company ultimately controlled by Israeli billionaire Idan Ofer.”

According to further information:

CMA CGM, a major freight forwarder based in Marseille, France, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. However, the ship's crew had acted as if they believed the ship was facing a threat.

…The vessel had had its automatic identification system turned off since Tuesday when it left Dubai's Jebel Ali port, according to MarineTraffic.com data analyzed by the AP.

So it's likely that the crew turned off the tracker because they suspected a drone was overhead trying to target the ship. In the aftermath of the attack, a statement from the operator indicated that as of Saturday, “the vessel in question is currently sailing as scheduled” and that “all crew are safe and sound.”

The following unverified photograph circulated widely on social media on Saturday the 25th

Tensions have risen in the Red Sea and Persian Gulf areas over fears that Iran-backed groups may step up attacks on shipping. On November 21, the Houthis seized an Israeli-linked ship and are holding the 25 international crew members hostage.

The still-captured Galaxy Leader is ultimately owned by Ray Car Carriers, founded by Abraham “Rami” Ungar. With an estimated 2019 net worth of more than $2 billion, he is among the 30 richest individuals in Israel. The Biden administration is now threatening to formally designate the Houthis as a terrorist organization. The White House also said that Iran was complicit in the hijacking of the Galaxy Leader. It is not yet clear whether this latest drone attack had Houthi involvement.

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The article Israeli-owned ship attacked by Iranian-made drone comes from Economic Scenarios .

This is a machine translation of a post published on Scenari Economici at the URL https://scenarieconomici.it/nave-di-proprieta-israeliana-attaccata-da-un-drone-di-fabbricazione-iraniana/ on Sun, 26 Nov 2023 06:15:20 +0000.