Salvage efforts to rescue stricken Red Sea tanker Sounion makes ‘slow’ progress after oil ship was hit by Houthi missiles

The rescue mission of stricken Red Sea tanker Sounion is reportedly making slow progress after the oil ship was targeted by Houthi missiles.

The towing of the abandoned tanker which was struck by the Yemen rebels last month is proceeding slowly in its second day, according to a Greek military source.  

The operation which began Saturday ‘is proceeding at a very slow pace’, the source said, adding that it was ‘initially headed north’ without revealing a destination.

The tanker was hit on August 21 by Iran-backed Houthis with small arms fire, missiles and a drone boat off the coast of Hodeida while carrying 136,000 tonnes of crude oil – setting off blasts that put the Red Sea at risk of a major oil spill four times the size of the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster off Alaska.

After the initial strike, the Houthis returned and detonated charges on the ship’s deck, setting off new fires.

Explosions took place on the deck of the Greek-flagged oil tanker Sounion on the Red Sea last month but the rescue mission is reportedly making slow progress

The Iranian-backed Houthi militant group detonated explosives on the oil tanker MT SOUNION off the coast of Yemen on August 19

The operation is being overseen by the European Union‘s Red Sea naval mission, Aspides, which Sunday said the tanker was being towed to a ‘safe location’.

‘The salvage of the MV SOUNION is a complex operation and consists of various phases,’ the mission said on X, formerly Twitter.

It added aerial shots of the tanker escorted by two warships, one dated Sunday, in which it is still emitting smoke.

Greek state news agency ANA said the tugboat was escorted by three frigates, helicopters and a special forces team, without disclosing the states of origin.

Fires were still visible on board in Aspides pictures on X, formerly Twitter, dated Saturday.

‘When it reaches safe mooring there will be an attempt to put out the fire and preliminary steps will be taken to secure the cargo from leaking,’ the Greek source said Sunday.

The ships’ radars have been turned off for security reasons.

The tanker had been anchored west of the rebel-held port city of Hodeida, midway between Yemen and Eritrea.

The Sounion’s crew – made up of 23 Filipinos and two Russians – was rescued the day after the attack by a French frigate serving with the EU mission.

The Sounion was carrying around one million barrels of oil when the Houthis initially attacked it. 

In video footage of the attack, the Iran-backed Houthis could be heard chanting their motto as the bombs detonated aboard the oil tanker Sounion: ‘God is the greatest; death to America; death to Israel; curse the Jews; victory to Islam.’

The blasts put the Red Sea at risk of a major oil spill four times the size of the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster off Alaska 

The thick black clouds of smoke and flames on the tanker as it was blown up with explosives

The Sounion was carrying around one million barrels of oil when the Houthis initially attacked it on August 21 with small arms fire, projectiles and a drone boat

Smoke rising from the Greek-flagged oil tanker Sounion following Yemen’s Houthis attacks on August 19

Fireballs and smoke pictured erupting aboard the tanker in the Red Sea

The explosives later dropped on the tanker found the barrels of oil with devastating effects

The footage showed masked Houthi fighters carrying Kalashnikov-style rifles boarding the Sounion after it was abandoned, with the bridge appearing ransacked.

Fighters then rigged explosives over hatches on its deck leading to the oil tankers below. At least six simultaneous blasts could be seen in the footage. 

The Houthi-controlled SABA news agency described mysterious leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi as saying the Sounion attack shows America ‘is lying in its claims regarding any deterrence of Yemeni operations supporting Palestine.’

‘The effectiveness of our operations and their control of the situation is acknowledged by the enemies,’ al-Houthi said at the time.

The EU naval force was formed in February to protect merchant vessels in the Red Sea from attacks by the Houthi rebels, who have waged a campaign against international shipping that they say is intended to show solidarity with Hamas in its war with Israel in the Gaza Strip.

Since November, the Houthi attacks have caused the sinking of two ships and deaths of at least four crew members.

The Houthis have been firing drones and missiles at ships in the vital commercial route, saying they are targeting vessels linked to Israel, the US and Britain in solidarity with Palestinians over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

They have also fired missiles and drones at Israel repeatedly in what they say is solidarity with the Palestinians, since the Gaza war began with a Hamas attack on Israel in October.

The drone that hit Tel Aviv for the first time in July killed a man and wounded four people. Israeli air strikes in response on Houthi military targets near the port of Hodeidah killed six and wounded 80.

Previously, Houthi missiles have not penetrated deep into Israeli air space, with the only one reported to have hit Israeli territory falling in an open area near the Red Sea port of Eilat in March.

Israel should expect more strikes in the future ‘as we approach the first anniversary of the October 7 operation, including responding to its aggression on the city of Hodeidah,’ Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said.