Unidentified ship ‘not under command’ after attack in Red Sea, UK navy says

A Greek-operated oil tanker was adrift in the Red Sea after being subjected to a salvo of attacks. 

The Sounion was attacked while sailing through the waterway and suffered minor damage, its owner and operator Delta Tankers said. It didn’t specify whether the ship was drifting as a result of damage from the attack, or how long it might do so.

A tanker was hit by three projectiles having earlier been approached by two small ships, UK Maritime Trade Operations, which is part of the navy, said in a notice. There were no casualties reported, it added. 

The Sounion, which is able to haul about a million barrels of crude oil, is adrift while the crew assess the impact, according to Delta. It will continue its onward journey in due course, the company said.

Vessels have been regularly attacked in the Red Sea since Yemen’s Houthi militants began targeting merchant ships late last year in protest at Israel’s activities in Gaza. In June, they sank a ship with a sea drone for the first time.

Many commercial ships are avoiding the region around the Red Sea and consequently the Suez Canal due to the unrest, instead sailing around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope. 

According to data intelligence firm Kpler, the ship loaded at cargo of Iraqi crude earlier this month. It switched off its signal as it headed past the coast of Oman on its way to the Gulf of Aden.