The Daily Telegraph - Saturday
Houthi rebels’ missile strike sets British tanker on fire
HOUTHI rebels claimed to have struck a British-registered oil tanker with a missile, setting it on fire.
Yemeni naval forces attacked the tanker, the Marlin Luanda in the Gulf of Aden, the Iran-backed group’s military spokesman, Yahya Saree, said.
Multinational firm Trafigura, which has offices in London, said the safety of crew on the vessel, operated on its behalf, is its “foremost priority”.
Military ships in the region were on the way to provide assistance, it said last night.
UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported an incident 60 nautical miles south-east of Aden yesterday.
It comes after an earlier incident in which two missiles were reported to have exploded in the water and “vessel and crew are safe and no damage reported”.
The Yemeni armed forces claimed it had targeted Marlin Luanda, which it described as a British oil tanker, in the Gulf of Aden.
Shipping data suggests the vessel sails under the flag of the Marshall Islands.
UKMTO said authorities have been informed and are responding to the latest strike, warning other vessels to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity.
The Houthis have repeatedly launched attacks on ships in the Red Sea since November over Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. But they have frequently targeted vessels with tenuous or no clear links to Israel, endangering shipping on a key route for global trade.
Alongside numerous air strikes on key Houthi targets, the UK and US are also targeting key figures in the Iranbacked militant group with sanctions.
A Trafigura spokesperson said in a statement: “Firefighting equipment on board is being deployed to suppress and control the fire caused in one cargo tank on the starboard side.
“The safety of the crew is our foremost priority.”