Houthis attack tanker ‘Olympic Spirit’ in the Red Sea

CAIRO, Oct 10 (Reuters) – A Liberia-flagged tanker was hit twice with missiles and drones in the Red Sea on Thursday morning, in an attack claimed by Iran-linked Houthi militants.

The Olympic spirit was hit about 73 nautical miles (135 kilometers) southwest of the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah, British maritime security firm Ambrey said.

The tanker, en route from Jeddah in Saudi Arabia to Muscat in Oman, was hit on its starboard side. The projectile hit the bridge and caused minor damage, Ambrey said.

Four hours later, two additional projectiles reportedly exploded within 0.27 nautical miles of the ship’s port side.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Agency said in a statement that the captain of the Olympic spirit reported no fires on board or casualties.

“The damage is minor. The ship has some technical problems, but it is seaworthy and continues its journey,” a maritime security source said. “They (the crew members) are all safe.”

The ship is sailing to its next port of call, the British maritime agency added.

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement said later on Thursday that it had targeted the Olympic spirit with 11 ballistic missiles and two drones.

It added that it had also attacked a ship it identified as St. John in the Indian Ocean with a winged missile, as part of attacks it is launching on global shipping over Israel’s war in Gaza.

Houthi fighters in Yemen have carried out nearly 100 attacks on ships crossing the Red Sea since November, saying they stand in solidarity with Palestinians in Israel’s years-long war in Gaza. They sank two ships, seized another and killed at least four seafarers.

(Reporting by Ahmed Tolba and Enas Alashray in Cairo and Ahmed Elimam and Tala Ramadan in Dubai and Renee Maltezou and Yannis Souliotis in Athens; Editing by Kim Coghill, Christian Schmollinger, Lincoln Feast, Sharon Singleton and Lisa Shumaker)

(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2024.

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