Houthi-Hit oil set burning for fresh rescue effort

Specialist rescue teams are to renew efforts to remove a burning oil tanker that has been stuck in the Red Sea for more than three weeks after it was attacked by Houthi militants, the European Union’s naval force in the region said.

The Houthis attacked the tanker Sounion as it sailed to Greece loaded with Iraqi heavy oil, forcing the crew to abandon ship. The rebels then detonated explosives on its deck. The EU force is ready to “facilitate a further rescue operation” by protecting the vessels that will tow the ship, X says.

An announcement on the website of the Pakistan Navy Hydrographic Service said the rescue operation would begin on Friday afternoon. He advised ships to keep a five nautical mile wide berth.

On September 12, MV SOUNION remains on fire after being attacked in the Red Sea. The vessel is currently anchored, not afloat and there are no signs of oil leaking from the main cargo hold.
To prevent an environmental disaster, it is essential that the public, private… pic.twitter.com/jDYZkUNa6s
— EUNAVFOR ASPIDES (@EUNAVFORASPIDES) September 13, 2024

Sounion was attacked on August 21 and remains in flames. An earlier effort to save the vessel was abandoned because the tow would not be successful.

The EU also said there was no sign of oil leaking from the ship’s cargo hold. Greece and the US have previously said there were signs of a leak, although it may have come from the ship’s fuel tanks rather than its cargo.

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