Image supply, Indian Navy
A tanker with hyperlinks to the UK was on hearth for a number of hours within the Gulf of Aden after being hit by a missile fired by the Houthis.
The Iran-backed motion, primarily based in Yemen, mentioned it focused the Marlin Luanda on Friday in response to “American-British aggression”.
The US and UK have launched air strikes on Houthi targets in response to assaults on ships within the Red Sea area.
French, Indian and US naval ships supplied help to the vessel.
UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps known as the attack “insupportable and unlawful.”
“It is our obligation to guard freedom of navigation within the Red Sea and we stay as dedicated to that trigger as ever,” he mentioned on X.
The operator of the Marlin Luanda is registered as being Oceonix Services Ltd, a UK registered firm.
The tanker flies below the flag of the Marshall Islands and is operated on behalf of Trafigura – a multinational buying and selling firm.
In an update on Saturday, Trafigura mentioned all crew have been protected and that the fireplace in a cargo tank had been put out. The ship was now crusing in direction of a protected harbour, the corporate mentioned.
The US Central Command (Centcom) mentioned there have been no casualties on the tanker, which was made up of twenty-two Indian and 1 Bangladeshi crew members.
It is the latest attack on business delivery by the Houthis in and across the Red Sea. The group says it’s concentrating on vessels within the area in assist of Palestinians in Gaza, the place Israel is combating Hamas.
In a press release, a Houthi spokesperson claimed the Marlin Luanda was a British ship and was focused in response to “American-British aggression towards our nation”.
The UK authorities mentioned assaults on business delivery are “utterly unacceptable” and that Britain and its allies “reserve the best to reply appropriately”.
The US Central Command mentioned “these illegal actions don’t have anything to do with the battle in Gaza”.
“Neither the vessel nor its crew have any affiliation to Israel. The Houthis have fired indiscriminately into the Red Sea, concentrating on vessels impacting over 40 international locations around the globe,” Centcom mentioned in a press release.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) mentioned the incident occurred 60 nautical miles south-east of Aden.
It warned different vessels to transit with warning and report any suspicious exercise.
Later, Centcom mentioned its forces had carried out a strike at 03:45 native time (00:45 GMT) on Saturday “towards a Houthi anti-ship missile aimed into the Red Sea and which was ready to launch”. They “destroyed the missile in self-defence”, Centcom mentioned.
Since November, the Houthis have launched dozens of assaults on business vessels travelling by means of the Red Sea, one of many world’s busiest delivery lanes.
