The Yemeni Houthi militia has published a video of its latest attack on the oil tanker “Chios Lion”.
In the video, which went viral on the short messaging service X, a remote-controlled boat approaches the tanker. A short time later, an explosion can be seen, and in an attached clip, rebels can be heard singing joyfully about the manoeuvre.
Explosion on the hull of the “Chios Lion”
The 244 m long and 42 m wide “Chios Lion” is operated by Stealth Maritime and sails under the Liberian flag. The oil tanker has a capacity of 107,525 dwt. It was originally heading south in the Red Sea, but turned around after the attack and left the danger zone. The captain and crew were reportedly not injured.
The Joint Maritime Information Center (JMIC) for the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden announced that the tanker is to be inspected for damage in order to minimise the risk of oil leaks.
Houthi continue series of attacks
The Houthi declared that they had attacked the tankers “Chios Lion” and “Bentley I” (Panama, approx. 40,000 ) on Monday with ballistic missiles, drones and unmanned explosive boats. This was in response to the Israeli airstrike on the town of Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip, which took place on Saturday.
These events continue the series of attacks by the Houthi in the Red Sea. They had previously sunk the ships “Rubymar ” in February and the “Tutor” in June. They also carried out attack manoeuvres on other ships, sometimes with missiles and recently more and more frequently with unmanned boats.
Due to the ongoing attacks, numerous ships avoid the passage through the Red Sea and instead take the detour via the Cape of Good Hope. In turn, there were severe storms there last week; one ship was damaged due to a heavy list and a container ship lost several containers.
