The crew was evacuated from the Houthi-hit oil tanker in the Red Sea

The crew of a ship which has suffered several attacks in the Red Sea has been evacuated with naval support.

Delta Tankers, which operates the Sunion, said on Thursday that plans are now in place to move the vessel to a safer destination where inspections and repairs can be carried out. The ship was attacked on Wednesday and then drifted after the engine lost power.

Ships 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. Wednesday’s incident was one of the worst since the Houthis sank a ship with a maritime drone for the first time in June.

The ship is carrying 150,000 tonnes of crude oil, the European Union’s naval force in the region said in a post on X. The ship now poses a danger to navigation and the environment, it added.

On August 21, MV SOUNION, which had not requested the protection of EUNAFVOR ASPIDES 🇪🇺, was attacked in the Southern Red Sea area and lost engine power.
Following a request from the commander, the operation sent a ship to rescue the crew.
As they approach… pic.twitter.com/gdSbTjmzRm
— EUNAVFOR ASPIDES (@EUNAVFORASPIDES) August 22, 2024

Sounion loaded its cargo in Iraq earlier this month, according to vessel tracking data compiled by Bloomberg.

The ship is no longer adrift and is now anchored in the Red Sea, the Associated Press reported, citing the European Union’s military operation in the region. A French destroyer was said to have rescued 29 sailors from the tanker.

Photo: An oil tanker sailing at sunset. Photo credit: Marcelo del Pozo/Bloomberg

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