Red Cross visits crew of hijacked Israel-linked ship for 2nd time since being detained in Yemen

CAIRO (AP) — A team of the International Red Cross has visited a 25-member crew on board of the Galaxy Leader vessel, which was hijacked last year by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels and is docked in the port city of Hodeidah— a Houthi stronghold.

The International Committee of the Red Cross says the visit yesterday was coordinated with local authorities, who reportedly provided access to the crew on the ship, says Jurg Montani, ICRC’s head of Yemen Delegation. A first visit by ICRC took place in May.

“It is part of the ICRC’s mandate and activities to visit all persons detained in relation to a conflict, to monitor conditions of detention and the treatment of detainees,” Montani says, adding that the organization is trying to facilitate links between the detainees and their families or diplomatic representations of their respective home countries.

Houthi rebels hijacked the cargo ship in the Red Sea in November 2023 and held its 25 crew members hostage in response to Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, sparked by the terror group’s October 7 massacre.

The crew members being held are from Bulgaria, the Philippines, Romania, Ukraine and Mexico, according to the ship’s Japanese operator NYK Line.

Nasser El-Dien Aamer, general director of Saba News Agency who accompanied the ICRC during their visit, tells Houthi-controlled al-Masirah TV that the fate of the crew members depends on negotiations with Hamas given that it’s an Israeli ship.

“If negotiations are successful, the authorities in Sanaa will immediately release them once an agreement is reached with Hamas,” he says, adding that the crew members are in “very good condition,” communicating with their families and receiving health care.

The Philippines government said in a statement last month that several of the 17 Filipino crew members were experiencing “significant health issues,” showing symptoms of malaria.