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Crisis in Yemen

Crew member of Sounion tanker wounded in Houthi attack

The Yemeni source interviewed by TASS could not name the nationality of the wounded crew member

DUBAI, August 22. /TASS/. A crew member of the Sounion tanker was wounded as a result of Wednesday’s attack by Yemen’s rebel Ansar Allah (Houthi) movement, an official from Yemen’s internationally recognized government has told TASS.

The Greek-flagged Sounion tanker was attacked in the Red Sea on Wednesday morning. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Coordination Center (UKMTO) reported that the incident occurred 77 nautical miles west of the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah. According to the UK coordination center, the vessel was approached by two boats carrying around 15 armed men in total. A shootout between the attackers and the crew ensued, the ship was hit by four unidentified shells and went out of control. Later, the captain notified UKMTO about another attack, which resulted in a fire on board the vessel.

The Yemeni official told TASS that a crew member of Sounion was wounded in the latest attack.

"The Houthis, who approached the ship on a third boat, opened gunfire and, presumably, fired a grenade launcher, inflicting wounds on a crew member," he said.

The Yemeni source interviewed by TASS could not name the nationality of the wounded crew member.

Greek company Delta Tankers owns the ship. Greece’s Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy said the crew comprises 23 Philippine nationals and two Russians, adding that none of them was wounded in the incident.

However, the Houthis have not yet claimed responsibility for the attack on Sounion. Their last confirmed attack on a commercial ship took place on August 7.

Following the escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis warned that they would launch strikes on Israeli territory while barring ships associated with the Jewish state from passing through the waters of the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait until Tel Aviv ceased its military operation against Palestinian radical group Hamas in the embattled enclave. Since mid-November, dozens of civilian ships have been attacked by the Houthi in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

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