Greek oil tanker ablaze and adrift in Red Sea after multiple attacks

A Greek-flagged oil tanker with 25 crew members on board has caught fire after multiple attacks and is adrift in the Red Sea.

The Sounion was attacked by more than a dozen people on two small boats who fired multiple projectiles at the ship when it was about 77 nautical miles (143km) west of Yemen’s port city of Hodeidah on Wednesday morning, the Greek shipping ministry and the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said.

There was a brief exchange of fire, the UKMTO said. In a later update, it said the ship reported another attack that caused the fire and led the vessel to lose engine power and its ability to manoeuvre.

The EU Red Sea naval mission said it responded to a request from the shipping company and the captain of the vessel and dispatched a unit to provide protection to the crew, made up of 23 Filipinos and two Russians. The crew abandoned the vessel and were rescued by the mission, an official told the Reuters news agency. There were no reports of injuries.

“During the approach to the incident area, in the morning hours of Aug. 22, a USV (Unmanned Surface Vehicle) was successfully neutralised as it posed a threat to the MV SOUNION and its crew,” the mission official added.

Greece’s Maritime Affairs Minister Christos Stylianides condemned what he described as “a flagrant violation of international law and a serious threat to the security of international shipping”.

Greece said the ship could have been hit either by missiles or drones.

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