A masked fighter walks across the deck of the stricken tanker, kneels before a set of cables and a detonator, then presses a button. Moments later, five fireballs erupt across the deck, engulfing the entire length of the ship in plumes of black smoke.
These were the images released by Yemen's Houthis on Thursday in a video showing militants from the Iran-backed group storming the Greek-flagged MV Delta Sounion, raising fears of an environmental catastrophe in one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.
The MV Delta Sounion, carrying about 1 million barrels of crude oil, according to Pentagon officials, was en route to Greece from Iraq when it was hit by a barrage of shells near the Houthi-controlled Yemeni port city of Hodeidah.
There were no casualties among the 23 Filipino sailors and two Russians on board; they were later evacuated. Fires broke out and the ship lost engine power.
The Houthis said they attacked the Sounion tanker as part of their 10-month campaign to support the Palestinians in the Gaza war by attacking Israel-linked ships in the Red Sea.
In response, the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union have deployed warships to the Red Sea with the aim of neutralizing the Houthi threat. But disruption continues and Western military officials say they are facing some of the most intense naval engagements since World War II.
Hours after the Houthi-run Masirah TV channel broadcast the Sounion video, the group's leader, Abdul Malik al-Houthi, gave a televised speech praising what he described as a “bold and courageous” operation in Sounion for “violating” the group's “blockade” on Israeli ships.
“The impact of this on the economy of our enemies is increasing,” Al-Houthi said.
On Thursday, Eunavfor Aspides, the EU mission in the Red Sea, said in a statement on social media platform X that “multiple fires have been detected in several locations on the main deck of the vessel” and have been burning throughout the week.
Contrary to reports from other Western officials, Aspides said “there is no oil spill and the ship is still anchored and not adrift.”
Images taken by satellite intelligence firm Black Sky show flames burning throughout the day and night on the upper deck.
Aspides said European governments along with neighbouring countries were making diplomatic efforts to facilitate the rescue of the Sounion.
On Wednesday, Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdulsalam said in a statement on X that the group would not impede efforts to tow the ship. Such an effort could begin in the coming days, Reuters said on Friday.
The Houthi campaign has snarled global trade in the Red Sea, forcing ships to abandon the California-sized waterway for a longer journey around Africa. The result has been an average 39% increase in transit times between Asia and the Mediterranean, according to the research firm Sea-Intelligence, while the cost of shipping containers has more than tripled. Traffic in the Suez Canal has roughly halved. For Israel, the campaign has led to the near-bankruptcy of the port of Eilat.
Last month, Israel attacked the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah, killing at least six people in retaliation for a Houthi drone strike that killed one person in Tel Aviv.
The Houthis have vowed to respond to the bombing.
