Search for missing Indonesian crew member in Bab Al-Mandeb Strait continues

The Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has confirmed that the search for an Indonesian crew member who went missing in an attack on a vessel in the Bab Al-Mandeb Strait, Yemen, is still being carried out.

“For the Indonesian crew member who is still missing, search efforts are still being conducted by the relevant authorities in Yemen, and we continue to monitor these search efforts,” said Director of Protection of Indonesian Citizens at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Heni Hamidah, to the press in Jakarta on Thursday.

In order to monitor the development of the search operation for the crew of MV Tihamah, the Indonesian Embassy in Muscat continues to maintain communication with relevant parties, particularly the Yemeni Ministry of Foreign Affairs, she said.

The Yemeni Ministry of Foreign Affairs has given assurances that the search for the missing Indonesian crew member will continue. “They have not yet indicated when the search will be stopped,” Heni added.

Regarding the Indonesian crew members who survived the attack on MV Tihamah while it was docked at the port of Bab Al-Mandeb, the director at the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs revealed that they have been moved to a new care facility.

After being treated at the 2 December Hospital in the coastal city of Mukha, Yemen, they were transferred to Prince Mohammed bin Salman Hospital in the city of Aden on 18 August.

She added that the Indonesian Embassy in Muscat is also ready to facilitate the repatriation of the two Indonesian crew members to Indonesia in the near future.

“We will continue to monitor while making preparations to repatriate the two surviving Indonesian crew members,” said Heni.

It is known that of the two surviving Indonesian crew members, one suffered minor injuries from shrapnel and did not require treatment, while the other sustained injuries and has received medical treatment at the hospital.

At the time of the bomb attack, MV Tihamah was carrying a total of 11 crew members, consisting of eight Pakistani nationals and three Indonesian nationals.

According to the government-affiliated television station Al-Jumhuriya TV, the attack, which is suspected to have been carried out by the Houthi group in Yemen, also killed two Pakistani nationals, as quoted by Anadolu.

The Bab Al-Mandeb Strait is the gateway to the Red Sea located on the western side of the Arabian Peninsula.