GALAXY LEADER

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Fate of crew and ship in the hands of terror organisation Hamas

The 'Galaxy Leader' and its crew are in the hands of the brothers in the Hamas resistance movement and the Al-Qassam Brigades. We have no claims of our own regarding this vessel,” Houthi spokesman Nasr Al-Din Amer said on March 14, and hope was fading for the imminent return of the international crew of the ship. A senior Filipino diplomat saying he did not expect a release until the war in Gaza is over, while the Houthis said, the fate of the sailors was now in Hamas’ hands.On Board were 17 Filipinos, two Bulgarians, three Ukrainians, two Mexicans and a Romanian hostage. 116 days since the hijacking, there was no indication that the Houthis were open to releasing them until the hostilities have ended. The word from the Houthiswas that they will keep holding the ship, and all the crew, until we see an end to the hostilities in Gaza, said Eduardo de Vega, the Filipino foreign affairs official. “It will be difficult for any government to recognize a government which attacks ships on the sea,” said de Vega. So, he said, “there is no point to negotiate, except to ensure humane conditions for the hostages."

Crew only released if Hamas agrees

The Yemeni Houthis announced on March 3 that they will only release the 25 crew members of the 'Galaxy Leader' if the Palestinian organisation Hamas agrees. “Given that the crew was operating on a ship related to Israel, their governments may make a request to the brothers in the Hamas organisation, and if they accept, we have no objections,” posted Nasr Al-Din Amer, a Houthi media official, adding that the Houthis have detained the commercial ship, which is linked to Israel, in support of Palestine and, therefore, the Palestinians are the ones entitled to decide. The ship has appeared in a number of videos on social media platforms after the Houthi authorities turned it into a tourist attraction in Yemen’s Hudaydah Governorate. The videos showed hundreds of citizens arriving daily on small boats to board the ship to take pictures and videos on board. The Houthi fighters have raised the Yemeni flag alongside the Palestinian flag on the ship, with photos of Palestinian children killed as a result of the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip. The company that owns Galaxy Leader released a statement that “all communications with the ship have been lost”, adding that as a shipping company, it will not comment further on the political or geopolitical situation.

Maritime community urged release of captured seafarers

The global maritime industry on Feb 19 marked the three-month anniversary of the seizure of the 'Galaxy Leader' and its 25 crew members by the Houthi forces, the only vessel seizure by Houthi forces since launching their attacks on shipping in Oct 2023. The maritime community worldwide has united in expressing their profound concern for the captured seafarers, hailing from Bulgaria, Mexico, Romania, Ukraine and the Philippines, and urging the Houthi forces to immediately release the ship’s crew. “The 25 seafarers who make up the crew of the Galaxy Leader are innocent victims of the ongoing aggression against world shipping, and their plight is a major concern as the merchant shipping community continues to come under attack. All efforts must be made by international organisations and States to secure the release of the seafarers. It is abhorrent that seafarers were seized by military forces and that they have been kept from their families and loved ones for too long. All 25 crew members of the Galaxy Leader must be released now,” the statement said. Numerous global maritime organizations co-signed this statement, demonstrating the industry’s unified stance on the issue. Signatories include the Asian Shipowners Association (ASA), Asociación de Navieros Españoles (ANAVE), Bahamas Shipowners Association, BIMCO, Chamber of Marine Commerce, International Chamber of Shipping, and the World Shipping Council, among many others.