A French destroyer has rescued 29 mariners from an oil tanker that came under repeated attack in the Red Sea on Thursday.
The tanker, identified as the Sounion by the Greek shipping ministry, is suspected to have been attacked by Yemen's Houthi rebels as part of their months-long campaign targeting ships in the Red Sea.
French officials said they also destroyed a bomb-carrying drone boat in the area.
Earlier on Thursday, the British military reported that the Sounion was drifting ,ablaze in the ocean after suffering repeated attacks, and its crew, made up of two Russians and 23 Filipinos, abandoned the vessel and was rescued by the EU's Red Sea naval mission "Aspides," an official in the mission told Reuters on Thursday.
MV Sounion, managed by Greek Company Delta Tankers, was hit by the projectile, which led to a fire onboard. The ship lost power and is drifting, according to a report.
This is the second attack against Sounion, which was approached by two small crafts earlier in the day. Around the same time, two projectiles hit the ship.
If the Houthis are responsible, it would be the second Delta Tankers-managed ship targeted by them, according to USNI News’ timeline of Red Sea Activity. The first attck took part when the Houthis targeted Delta Atlantica on Aug. 12.