The Houthis They demanded a new one attack in the Red Sea, this time against a British oil tanker. The story is still fragmented, but the general Yahya saree, military spokesman for the Yemeni rebels, announced the rocket attack on a British merchant ship that caused a fire on board. The accident occurred off the coast of Yemen, near Gulf of Adenalready the scene of similar episodes in recent weeks.
The Houthi attack on a British oil tanker
The Houthis themselves made the news known via video message. From what emerged Marlin Luanda would have been hit Anti-ship missiles. A fire would have broken out on board, but the crew would not have had any physical problems. Shortly before Yemeni rebels claimed responsibility, private maritime venture firm Ambrey announced that a merchant ship had been hit by a missile off the coast of Yemen.
The Houthi spokesman said only that the attack was carried out with “a series of naval missiles” and that it was “targeted.” “Today our armed forces attacked the British tanker Marlin Luanda in the Gulf of Aden with several naval missiles. The attack caused a fire on board,” he added.
The exact details of the accident are not yet clear. However, the affected area and the southern Red Sea lie at the center of a burning ring and have been the scene of numerous attacks on ships by Yemeni rebels. The raids so far have not been so serious that the vehicles have no longer been able to carry out their journeys, although they have Risks have increased dramatically.
Fire afternoon
What just ended was a day of fire. The Centcom (Unified Command of the United States Armed Forces) announced about the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Carney (DDG 64) in the Gulf of Aden. The rocket – it was explained – “it was successfully shot down by the USS Carney. No injuries or damage were reported.”
The British Maritime Commercial Traffic Agency (UKMTO) also said it had received reports of an accident about 60 nautical miles from the port city Al Hudaydah. The ship from which the report came heard explosions and aimed missiles about four nautical miles away. The second explosion occurred about a nautical mile from the ship's position, which reported no damage.
The position of the Yemeni rebels
The Houthis' position is clear. Yemeni rebels have been attacking ships on their way there since mid-November Israel in response to what they see as an attack Gaza Stripruns from October 7, 2023.
This prompted the US Secretary of Defense to Lloyd Austinto launch a multinational operation to protect shipping in the Red Sea. In addition, U.S. and British forces conducted significant attacks on Houthi positions aimed at limiting the militants' ability to attack commercial shipping. The US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has announced new sanctions against four leaders of Ansar Allah.