Houthi Rebels escalated Red Sea tensions with explosive attack on Greek Tanker, threatening an environmental disaster. 

The recent release of footage by Yemen’s Houthi rebels has revealed their involvement in planting explosives on the Greek-flagged oil tanker, Sounion, in the Red Sea. The video depicts Houthi fighters boarding the vessel, rigging explosives, and detonating bombs, raising fears of a significant oil spill that could devastate the region's marine environment. The incident marks one of the most serious attacks by the Houthis in their ongoing campaign to disrupt the passage of goods through the Red Sea amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

Dramatic new video has emerged of an explosive Houthi attack on a Greek ship in the Red Sea. It also stoked fears of an environmental catastrophe as up to a million barrels of crude oil leaked into the water. https://t.co/TWh1KQh9q4 @AshleeMullany #7NEWS pic.twitter.com/QnIq4FiE84

— 7NEWS Sydney (@7NewsSydney) August 31, 2024

 

The footage, released on Thursday, shows masked Houthi fighters wielding Kalashnikov-style rifles as they board the abandoned Sounion. The vessel, which carried approximately 1 million barrels of oil, had previously been attacked by the Houthis on August 21. The attack included small arms fire, projectiles, and a drone boat. Following the initial assault, the crew, consisting of 25 Filipinos and Russians, along with four private security personnel, were rescued by a French destroyer operating under the European Union’s Operation Aspides and taken to safety in Djibouti.

 

The video captures the fighters placing explosives over the hatches on the deck, leading to the oil tanks below. At least six simultaneous explosions are visible in the footage, confirming suspicions that the Houthis had boarded and planted explosives on the Sounion. Abdul Malik al-Houthi, the leader of the Houthi rebels, later claimed that the attack on the Sounion demonstrated America’s duplicity in its claims of deterring Yemeni operations supporting Palestine. “The effectiveness of our operations and their control of the situation is acknowledged by the enemies,” al-Houthi stated, further highlighting the group’s determination to use such attacks as leverage in their broader geopolitical objectives.

 

The attack has sparked international concern, with Western countries and the United Nations warning that any oil spill from the Sounion could cause catastrophic damage to the coral reefs and wildlife in the Red Sea. While the EU’s naval force in the region has not yet observed any oil spill from the tanker, they remain on high alert. Operation Aspides is preparing to take necessary action in coordination with European authorities and neighboring countries to prevent an environmental disaster. “Together, we can protect the environment and maintain stability in the region,” the EU mission stated.

 

U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric praised the international community’s efforts, including those of the U.N. special envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, to secure access to the vessel and prevent an environmental catastrophe. The Houthis have reportedly agreed to allow the salvage operation to proceed safely, though the timeline for these efforts remains unclear. Encouragingly, reports suggest that the salvage operations could soon commence with tugboats and rescue ships accessing the area.

The fires visible on the SOUNION's deck were caused by explosives set off by Houthi rebels, as shown in a video they released earlier. H/t @wammezz. pic.twitter.com/sVXLLrLqIK

— Christiaan Triebert (@trbrtc) August 30, 2024

 

However, the Houthis’ history of using the threat of oil spills to their advantage raises concerns. The group previously obstructed salvage efforts on the Safer oil tanker off the coast of Yemen, turning the situation into a political bargaining chip. Noam Raydan, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near-East Policy, warned, “Experience has shown that the group is willing to interfere with salvage efforts if they can turn the situation into a political bargaining chip.”

 

Since the start of the war in Gaza in October, the Houthis have targeted over 80 vessels with missiles and drones, seizing one vessel and sinking two others in attacks that have claimed the lives of four sailors. The U.S. military’s Central Command recently announced the destruction of a Houthi missile system and drone, underscoring the ongoing threats posed by the group in the region.

 

Credit: NBC News 2024-09-02

 

 

 

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What an armpit group of lowlife garbage people hopefully lots of information and intelligence is being gathered so when ready they will be wiped out in mass.

2 hours ago, Tug said:

What an armpit group of lowlife garbage people hopefully lots of information and intelligence is being gathered so when ready they will be wiped out in mass.

 

   Well, apart from of its Israel who are doing the wiping out of a terror group, then it would  be a genocide of innocent children, as history has shown us .

Convoys in the Red Sea, that is the best answer.

false flag to force interventions of the good old USA...

 

they don't have some drones that could sink those terrorists 24/7?

Edited September 2, 20241 yr by john donson