Netherlands-based shipping company Spliethoff has confirmed the death of a crew member from the MV Minervagracht, who succumbed to critical injuries sustained during an attack in the Gulf of Aden last week.
“It is with great sadness that Spliethoff shares the news of the passing of one of our valued crew members,” the company said in an official statement on Monday. “We extend our deepest sympathies to his family and loved ones.”
Of the vessel’s 19 crew members, most have since been safely repatriated. One sailor remains under medical care in Djibouti but is reported to be in a stable condition and is expected to return home later this week.
The Netherlands-flagged general cargo vessel was attacked on 29 September, approximately 128 nautical miles southeast of Yemen’s port city of Aden. The strike left the ship on fire and adrift, posing a navigational hazard in the busy waterway.
The incident marked the second assault on the Minervagracht within a week.
On 23 September, while en route to Djibouti, the vessel reported “a splash and the sound of an explosion in its vicinity” some 120 nautical miles east of Aden, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO).
Yemen’s Houthi movement later claimed responsibility for the latest attack.
The Iran-aligned group has intensified its campaign against commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since 2023, asserting that their operations are aimed at vessels linked to Israel in solidarity with Palestinians.
This fatality is the first from the Houthis’ attacks since early July, when at least four crew members were killed and five more went missing following a drone and missile strike on the Eternity C.
With this latest death, the toll on seafarers from Houthi assaults has now reached fourteen.
In response, the Dutch government has called on the European Union to formally designate Yemen’s Houthis as a terrorist organisation and to impose sanctions against the group.
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