The British military said the ship caught fire after being hit by a projectile in the Gulf of Aden off the coast of Yemen on Saturday.
One report also indicated that the crew was preparing to abandon the vessel after the fire, according to the Associated Press. A search and rescue operation is underway.
“The vessel was hit by an unknown projectile, which resulted in a fire,” UKMTO said, according to AP, adding: “Authorities are investigating.”
The ship was described by maritime security firm Ambrey as a Cameroon-flagged tanker “en route from Sohar, Oman to Djibouti”.
Ship details
Details of the vessel appear to match the Falcon, a Cameroon-flagged tanker carrying liquefied petroleum gas. The New York-based lobby group United Against Nuclear Iran previously identified the vessel as operating as part of Iran’s “ghost fleet” of ships that transport oil products from the country in defiance of international sanctions.
Who are the Houthis? Why are they attacking ships in the Red Sea Corridor?
The Houthis are a Zaydo Islamist group that rose to prominence in Yemen in the 1990s. Their name comes from the al-Houthi family, who are its leaders.
The Houthis rose to international prominence during the war between Israel and Hamas for their attacks on shipping and Israel, which they said were aimed at forcing Israel to stop fighting. The rebel group has not claimed any attacks since the ceasefire began on October 10.
Houthi attacks on ships resulted in the deaths of at least nine sailors, while four vessels sank. Their constant attacks affected world trade, with around $1 trillion worth of goods passing through the Red Sea corridor every year before the war. Their last attack was on the freighter Minervagracht marked utch on 29 September, in which one crew member on board was killed and another wounded.
Meanwhile, the Houthis have increasingly threatened Saudi Arabia and taken dozens of UN agency workers and other aid groups captive, claiming without evidence that they were spies – a claim strongly denied by the world body and others.
Houthis chief of staff is dead
An Israeli airstrike targeting a top Houthi rebel leader launched in August resulted in the death of its army chief of staff.
The Houthis have acknowledged the death of Major General Muhammad Abdul Karim al-Ghamari, who was sanctioned by the United Nations for his role in Yemen’s decade-long war.
Both Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged the death of al-Ghamari, who Katz said had now joined “his fellow Axis of Evil in the depths of hell”.
The strike, which took place on August 28, killed Houthi Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi along with several others. According to the AP, analysts suggested that al-Ghamari may have been wounded in another attack.
