Houthis Hit Trafigura Oil Tanker By Missile In Red Sea, Fire Breaks Out On Board
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Sulaiman
- . January 27, 2024
- . Update: January 27, 2024 1:38 pm
An oil tanker named Marlin Luanda, managed by Trafigura, was hit by a missile in the Gulf of Aden after crossing the Red Sea. This happened on Friday. The tanker was carrying petroleum products.
After the attack, a fire started in one of its tanks. The crew is trying to put out the fire with their equipment.
Trafigura, the company in charge of the tanker, said they are keeping in touch with the ship and watching the situation closely. They also mentioned that military ships are coming to help.
The Houthi militants from Yemen have said they are responsible for the attack. They called the ship a “British oil ship,” but Trafigura corrected that the ship is registered under the Marshall Islands. The Houthis said they used several missiles and made a direct hit, causing the ship to catch fire.
This attack is part of a series of attacks by Houthi militants on ships in the Red Sea. They started doing this in November to support Palestinians. In response, the United States and the United Kingdom began airstrikes against the Houthis on January 11. The aim was to stop the Iran-supported group.
On the same day, the Houthis also shot a missile at a U.S. Navy destroyer, Carney, in the Gulf of Aden. The ship shot down the missile, and nobody was hurt.
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Because of these attacks, some big oil tanker companies have stopped sending ships through the Red Sea. This has not caused a major problem for oil supply yet, but it could make oil prices go up if things get worse.
The Marlin Luanda was carrying Russian fuel. The Houthi militants have said before that they would not attack Russian and Chinese ships, but they would target American and British ones.
The tanker got the Russian fuel in a way that is not very clear, and this shows how Russia is still managing to sell its oil even with the sanctions because of its actions in Ukraine.
The situation is serious, and the military actions taken by the U.S. and its allies have not stopped the Houthis’ ability to attack ships. The area is still risky for ships, and more attacks have happened there recently.
