The Sounion has 150,000 tons of crude oil aboard and is a “navigational and environmental hazard,” the EU's Aspides naval mission said on Thursday.
ADVERTISEMENTFires broke out on Friday on a Greek-flagged oil tanker this week, with the vessel now appearing to be adrift in the Red Sea, authorities said on Friday.
It wasn't immediately clear what happened to the oil tanker Sounion after it was abandoned by its crew on Thursday and reportedly put at anchor.
The Houthis didn't immediately acknowledge the fire, but they have been conducting a months-long campaign against shipping in the Red Sea over the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. The attacks have disrupted a trade route that typically sees one trillion euros' worth in goods pass through it annually.
The British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre reported the fires in a note to mariners on Friday night.
“UKMTO have received a report that three fires have been observed on vessel,” the centre said. “The vessel appears to be drifting.”
A United States defence official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters, said American officials were aware of the fires and continued to monitor the situation.
The vessel had been staffed by a crew of 25 Filipinos and Russians, as well as four private security personnel, who were taken by a French destroyer to nearby Djibouti, the European Union's Aspides naval mission in the Red Sea said on Thursday.
The Sounion has 150,000 tons of crude oil aboard and represents a “navigational and environmental hazard,” the mission warned. “It is essential that everyone in the area exercises caution and refrains from any actions that could lead to a deterioration of the current situation.”
Late Friday night, the Houthis released footage of an explosion striking the Sounion, their fighters on the water in the distance chanting the group's slogan: “God is the greatest; death to America; death to Israel; curse the Jews; victory to Islam.”
A frame-by-frame analysis of the video conducted by The Associated Press suggested three simultaneous explosions struck the deck of the Sounion. That signature suggests an attack conducted by planted explosives, rather than a strike by missile or drone.
The Houthis have targeted more than 80 vessels with missiles and drones since the war in Gaza started in October. They seized one vessel that also killed four sailors. One of the sunken vessels, the Tutor, went down after the Houthis planted explosives aboard it, after its crew abandoned the ship due to an earlier attack, the rebel group later acknowledged.
Other missiles and drones have either been intercepted by a U.S.-led coalition in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets.
The rebels maintain that they target ships linked to Israel, the U.S. or the U.K. to force an end to Israel's campaign against Hamas in Gaza. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the conflict, including some bound for Iran.
As Iran threatens to retaliate against Israel over the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, the U.S. military told the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group to sail more quickly to the area. Early on Thursday, the U.S. military’s Central Command said that the Lincoln had reached the waters of the Middle East, without elaborating.
Washington has also ordered the USS Georgia-guided missile submarine to the region, while the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier strike group was in the Gulf of Oman.
ADVERTISEMENTAdditional F-22 fighter jets have flown into the region and the USS Wasp, a large amphibious assault ship carrying F-35 fighter jets, is in the Mediterranean Sea.
Early Saturday, the U.S. military's Central Command said it had destroyed a Houthi missile system in Yemen over the last 24 hours.