Bodies of Pakistani Sailors Killed in Red Sea Attack Begin Journey Home

The remains of two Pakistani crew members killed in a Houthi attack on the cargo vessel Tihama have begun their journey back to Pakistan. Officials at Mokha Port in Yemen prepared the bodies for transport on Monday, with the coffins subsequently loaded into vehicles bound for Aden Airport, from where a flight will carry them onward.

The deceased, identified as Umair Afzal and Muhammad Akram, were among six people who lost their lives in the strike in the Red Sea last Tuesday. Yemeni authorities confirmed that the dead also included another Pakistani national, one Indonesian, and two members of Yemen's government-allied National Resistance Forces. At least nine other crew members were wounded in the attack and were rescued by Yemen's military before being taken to a hospital.

Speaking at the port, Mokha Port Director Abdul Malik Al-Sharabi bid farewell to the returning sailors, expressing sorrow that commercial and civilian vessels are being targeted along Yemen's western Red Sea coast.

The attack marks the first known fatalities from Houthi strikes on shipping since the start of the US-Iran war in February. The incident has drawn condemnation from regional nations, including Pakistan and Egypt. It comes amid a broader escalation by the Houthi group, which has recently intensified attacks on the government-held port city of Mokha, other areas of Yemen, and oil facilities in neighboring Saudi Arabia.