‘Prosperity Guardian’ Fail: India Rescues U.S.-Owned Ship from Houthi Attack

The Indian Navy announced on Thursday that it rescued a U.S.-owned merchant ship called GENCO Picardy from a drone attack launched by the Iran-backed Houthi terrorists of Yemen. U.S. ships and submarines launched strikes against several Houthi missile sites after the attack.

GENCO Picardy, owned by New York City-based Genco Ship Management, was hit by a Houthi drone while sailing through the western Gulf of Aden with a cargo of phosphate rock.

The explosion caused a fire aboard the ship, which the crew managed to control. No critical damage or casualties were reported.

The Indian Navy responded to a distress call from the ship, whose crew of 22 included nine Indian nationals. The destroyer INS Visakhapatnam intercepted the stricken vessel about an hour after the Houthi attack and rendered assistance, which included an inspection of the damaged area by Indian Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) specialists. The EOD team concluded the GENCO Picardy was safe to continue on its way.

Ambrey Ltd., a British-based maritime risk management company, said the Houthi attack damaged the GENCO Picardy’s gangway and rendered it “not usable.”

India is not part of the U.S.-led Operation Prosperity Guardian, a security initiative to protect civilian vessels against Houthi attacks. The Indian Navy said the INS Visakhapatnam was on an independent anti-piracy patrol when it “swiftly responded” to the distress call.

The Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack, insisting they scored a “precise and direct” hit on the civilian ship. They said the attack was launched “in support of the Palestinian people and in response to the U.S. and British aggression against our country.” 

The GENCO Picardy attack came a few hours after the Biden administration, which delisted the Houthis as terrorists soon after President Joe Biden took office, restored a weaker and more limited form of terrorist designation for the Yemeni insurgents.

“Our forces will not hesitate to target all sources of threat in the Red and Arabian Seas within the legitimate right to defend Yemen and to continue supporting the oppressed Palestinian people,” said Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree.

Saree said retaliation from U.S. and British forces in the Red Sea was expected and warned that “a response to the American and British attacks is inevitably coming.”

“Any new attack will not remain without response and punishment,” he said.

RELATED — Pentagon: “No Indications” Houthis Will Stop Attacking

American forces did indeed respond to the Houthi terror attack, launching 14 missiles at positions in Yemen. The UK Defense Ministry said British forces were not involved in the strikes, unlike Thursday and Friday’s combined American and British retaliatory strikes against Houthi targets.