Filipino seafarers injured in Houthi attack back in Philippines

MANILA, Philippines — Two wounded Filipino crew members of a missile-stricken merchant vessel have returned to the Philippines, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said Thursday.

They arrived via a chartered medical evacuation flight on Thursday morning after they were cleared “fit for travel” by medical authorities in Djibouti. 

“The two were received by a medical team and taken to hospital where they will continue their recovery,” the DMW said, adding the crewmen and their families have requested privacy.

The two crewmen suffered serious injuries when their vessel True Confidence was struck by a missile fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels last week.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Worker Affairs Eduardo de Vega earlier said one suffered severe facial burns and the other had his leg amputated. 

Eleven crew members of True Confidence returned to the Philippines on Tuesday, nearly a week after a missile fired by Houthi rebels struck the fuel tanks of the Barbados-flagged, Liberian-owned ship. 

The attack in the Red Sea killed three seafarers, including two Filipinos. Their remains have yet to be recovered. 

Filipino mariners comprise more than 25% of 1.5 million sea-based workers worldwide, the highest number from any country, according to the government.

Since November, the Iran-backed militants have been attacking ships in the Red Sea, in professed solidarity with Palestinians during Israel's war on Gaza. — Gaea Katreena Cabico