April 2 (Reuters) – A Russian mariner detained for around eight months after being on board a ship attacked by Yemen’s Houthi militants has left the country for Russia following medical treatment in Sanaa, the Houthi-run foreign ministry said on Thursday.
The mariner, identified by Russian media as Aleksei Galaktionov, was a crew member of a Greek-operated cargo ship that was sunk by the Houthis in July 2025. He was wounded in the attack.
“The Russian citizen was transported on a United Nations aircraft, in coordination with the U.N. envoy,” the foreign ministry said, according to the Houthi-run news agency, adding that his departure was arranged after he had completed treatment.
It said the move followed contacts with Russian officials and with counterparts in Iran.
The crew of the ship was released in December, an official with the ship’s operator and a maritime security source told Reuters.
The Iran-aligned Houthis sank the Liberia-flagged Eternity C, which had 22 crew and three armed guards on board, after attacking it with sea drones and rocket-propelled grenades over two consecutive days.
The Houthis have attacked more than 100 ships in what they said was a campaign of solidarity with Palestinians during the Gaza war. They halted attacks after a ceasefire was announced in October last year.
(Reporting by ReutersEditing by Bill Berkrot)
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