An oil tanker is still burning six days after being attacked by the Houthis in the Red Sea.
The 2006-built Suezmax tanker, Sounion, has become the third of Greece’s Delta Tankers’ ships to have been targeted by Houthis this month.
According to Operation Aspides, also known as EUNAVFOR Aspides, the EU military
operation in response to Houthi attacks, the Sounion’s master called for help on 21 August
while the tanker was underway in the southern part of the Red Sea.
The Houthis had attacked the Sounion, causing the tanker engine to lose power.
At the time, the tanker was anchored and there were no signs of fire. EUNAVFOR ASPIDES
despatched a ship to evacuate Sounion’s crew and, along the way, destroyed a suspected
Houthi drone. Sounion’s crew were subsequently rescued and were transported to Djibouti.
However, two days later, the Houthis, which are retaliating against the Gaza War, struck the
tanker again, causing fires in at least five spots on the deck.
In an X post, EUNAVFOR ASPIDES said: “It’s estimated that these (the flames) are located
around the hatches of the vessel’s oil tanks. Additionally, part of the superstructure is on
fire, too. So far there are no obvious signs of an oil spill. The ship remains anchored at the
same point in international waters.”
As Sounion is loaded with 150,000 tonnes of crude oil, the fire presents an ecological threat. SP Global’s vessel-tracking data shows that Sounion was shipping oil from Basra, Iraq, to Singapore.
EUNAVFOR ASPIDES added: “All vessels in the area must exercise extreme caution, as the
Sounion is both a navigational and an imminent environmental hazard.”
The first Houthi attack on Delta Tankers’ ships occurred on 8 August, when Delta Blue,
avoided an explosion after four attempted Houthi attacks within 24 hours. On 13 August,
another of the company’s tankers, Delta Atlantica, escaped unscathed after the Houthis
tried three times to strike the ship.
Security consultancy Vanguard believes that Delta Tankers’ ships are being targeted after
another of its tankers, Delta Star called at Israel in July.
Martina Li
Asia Correspondent
