Greek oil tanker on fire and adrift after multiple attacks in Red Sea 

A crew of 25 has been rescued from a Greek-flagged oil tanker after it caught fire after multiple attacks 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.

On Thursday, the European Union’s Red Sea naval mission said it responded to a request from the shipping company and the vessel’s captain and dispatched a unit to provide protection to the crew of 23 Filipinos and two Russians.

The crew abandoned the vessel and were rescued by the EU mission, an official told the Reuters news agency. There were no reports of injuries.

As it approached the area on Thursday “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.

The Iran-aligned Houthis began to target international shipping near Yemen last November, saying the move was in solidarity with Palestinians over the war in Gaza. The Houthis have not claimed responsibility for the Sounion attack.

Delta Tankers, the ship’s operator, confirmed the ship was adrift and had sustained minor damage.

The vessel was on its way from Iraq to a port near Athens where there are many refineries, the Greek port authority said.

The ship is the third Delta Tankers-operated vessel to be targeted. Earlier this month, the Liberia-flagged Delta Atlantica and Delta Blue tankers were struck in separate attacks.

In another incident south of the Yemeni port city of Aden, a merchant ship reported five explosions in nearby waters, UKMTO said, later identifying the vessel as the Panama-flagged SW North Wind I. The crew was reported to be unharmed and the vessel was proceeding to the next port of call, it added.

Houthi attacks have prompted many ship owners to avoid the Red Sea region and send their vessels on lengthier and more costly routes around the southern tip of Africa.