Sounion oil tanker on fire after Houthi strike
The Houthi rebels in Yemen posted a video on Saturday showing the Sounion oil tanker that was attacked on Wednesday, on its way from Iraq to Cyprus, burn after it was hit by missiles and assaulted by small boats 140 kilometers (87 miles) west of the port of Hodeidah.
The tanker's crew abandoned ship and were rescued by the French Navy and taken to Djibouti. On Friday, the EU's Red Sea naval mission "Aspides" said the tanker was docked between Yemen and Eritrea but did not say if the fire on board had been extinguished.
The Sounion was the third vessel of the Greek Delta Tankers company to be attacked by the Houthis in the Red Sea in a month. There were 25 crew members on board from the Philippines and Russia and four security officers. No one was hurt in the attack.
Aspides said the tanker was carrying 150,000 tons of crude oil, which posed an environmental threat and endangered other maritime travel. In a statement, Aspides said anyone in the area must exercise caution.