DUBAI, August 23. /TASS/. Yemen’s rebel Ansar Allah (Houthi) movement claimed responsibility for the attack on the Sounion tanker, which is currently in distress in the Red Sea, the movement’s military spokesman Yahya Saria said.

"The armed forces of Yemen conducted two military operations in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The first one targeted the Sounion oil tanker, owned by a company with ties to the Israeli enemy, which violated the ban on transit to ports of the occupied Palestine," he said on Houthi-owned Al Masirah television. "The ship was hit directly and with precision during its transit via the Red Sea, and is now in danger of sinking."

The spokesman also claimed responsibility for striking the Sw North Wind I commercial ship, which is "also owned by a company with ties to the Israeli enemy, which violated the ban on transit to ports of the occupied Palestine."

Saria said both attacks involved unmanned aerial vehicles, drone boats, cruise and ballistic missiles.

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.

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. A spokesperson for EU military Operation Aspides in the Red Sea said the vessel’s crew had been evacuated. Greek company Delta Tankers, which owns the ship, later confirmed the information.