Red Sea: Houthi-launched missile strikes oil tanker

In the latest series of missile attacks, Iran-backed Houthi forces struck an oil tanker transiting the Red Sea with a missile, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said.

PHOTO: A crude oil tanker. Getty Images

The Yemen-based militants struck M/T Wind, a Panamanian-flagged, Greek owned and operated oil tanker, with an anti-ship ballistic missile (ASBM) on 18 May, CENTCOM reported.

The oil tanker was most recently docked in Russia and headed for China, CENTCOM said. “The impact of the ASBM caused flooding which resulted in the loss of propulsion and steering,” it said.

The Yemeni militia’s spokesperson Yahya Sare’e claimed the attack on social media platform X (formerly Twitter).

ASBMs are drones that the Houthis have been using to attack commercial vessels in the Red Sea.

These attacks in the Red Sea have escalated geopolitical tensions and fueled supply concerns in the global oil market.

Brent futures gained after “Yemen’s Houthi rebels fired a ballistic missile at an oil tanker in the Red Sea that was carrying crude to China early Saturday,” VANDA Insights’ founder and analyst Vandana Hari said.

By Aparupa Mazumder 

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