New Delhi: A crude oil tanker carrying 25 Indian crew members was hit by a drone assault by the Iran-backed Houthi militants within the Crimson Sea on Sunday, the Indian Navy mentioned. The tanker, MV SAIBABA, was not India-flagged as claimed by the US Central Command (CENTCOM) earlier, however owned by Gabon and registered in India, the navy clarified.
The assault was a part of a collection of assaults on industrial transport by the Houthi rebels, who’ve been combating a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen since 2015. The US CENTCOM mentioned that two Houthi anti-ship ballistic missiles and a number of other one-way assault drones have been fired from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen on December 23, concentrating on worldwide transport lanes within the Southern Crimson Sea.
The US naval ship USS LABOON, which was patrolling the world as a part of Operation Prosperity Guardian, intercepted and shot down a number of the drones, and responded to the misery calls from the attacked vessels. No accidents or harm have been reported within the incident, the US CENTCOM mentioned.
One other vessel, the M/V BLAAMANEN, a Norwegian-flagged chemical/oil tanker, reported a close to miss of a drone assault. The US CENTCOM mentioned that these assaults have been the 14th and 15th on industrial transport by the Houthi militants since October 17, and posed a risk to the security and safety of worldwide maritime visitors.
The Houthi rebels have been escalating their assaults on transport and US belongings within the area, in retaliation for the Israel-Hamas battle that broke out on October 7. The rebels have additionally seized a ship in a raid final month, and claimed accountability for a drone strike on a Saudi oil facility in November.
India, which has a robust curiosity within the free motion of economic transport, has been monitoring the developments and collaborating in worldwide efforts to make sure protected transit of ships within the Arabian Sea. The Ministry of Exterior Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi mentioned on Thursday that India was supportive of the US-led Operation Prosperity Guardian, which goals to ramp up safety within the Crimson Sea area.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi additionally had a phone dialog along with his Israeli counterpart Naftali Bennett on Friday, and mentioned the regional state of affairs and the threats posed by terrorism and radicalism.
