Greek Tanker Left Adrift After Series of Red Sea Attacks

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Thursday August 22, 2024

A Greek-flagged tanker has been left adrift in the Red Sea after a series of attacks on Wednesday.

The Suezmax tanker Sounion came under attack three times on Wednesday morning, with the first incident taking place about 77 nautical miles west of Al Hudaydah, the UK Maritime Trade Operations agency said in a social media post.

"The master of a merchant vessel reported at 2:57 AM UTC that the vessel was approached by two small craft," the agency said.

"The two craft hailed the merchant vessel, leading to a brief exchange of small arms fire.

"At 5 AM UTC the master reported that the merchant vessel had been struck by two unidentified projectiles.

"At 5:49 AM UTC the master reported a further attack by an unknown projectile.

"There is a fire onboard and the vessel has lost engine power.

"The vessel is drifting and not under command.

"The master also reports a small craft acting suspiciously in the vicinity."

Commercial ships operating near Yemen have been coming under attack from the country's Houthi movement over the past nine months in a response to the conflict in Gaza.

Several leading shipping companies have been avoiding the region altogether, taking longer routes around Africa rather than using the Suez Canal. This is likely to deliver a significant boost to bunker demand and freight markets while the current situation continues.

Ship & Bunker News Team
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