Oil tanker on fire in Gulf of Aden after Houthi missile attack

An oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden is on fire after Yemen’s Houthi militants fired missiles at the tanker on Friday amid ongoing attacks on the key shipping route.

The Marlin Luanda oil tanker was struck by a missile, the commodities group Trafigura, which is operating the vessel, said on Friday.

In a statement, Trafigura said the vessel “was struck by a missile in the Gulf of Aden after transiting the Red Sea,” adding that “firefighting equipment on board is being deployed to suppress and control the fire caused in one cargo tank on the starboard side.”

The Iran-backed militants claimed responsibility for the attack, saying in a statement they fired missiles toward the tanker in response to the “American-British aggression against our country [Yemen]” and in support of the Palestinian people.

Trafigura, which has offices in Britain, said it is monitoring the situation and that military ships in the region are “underway to provide assistance.”

The British government has yet to comment on the attack.

Earlier on Friday, US Central Command said the Houthis also fired an anti-ship ballistic missile towards a US destroyer in the Gulf of Aden.

The US and UK have been carrying out strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen after Biden administration and its allies warned that the group would bear the consequences of its attacks in the international shipping lane.

The Houthis have said that they won’t stop their attacks until the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza comes to an end. Houthi leader Abdul Malek al-Houthi said in a speech on Thursday that it is “a great honor and blessing to be confronting America directly.”

The attacks have forced some of the world’s biggest shipping and oil companies to suspend transit through one of the world’s most important maritime trade routes.

This is a developing story and will be updated.