Oil slick off Yemen coast after Houthi tanker attack: charity

The 220-kilometer-long oil slick indicates that “the damaged ship was leaking oil,” said social media platform X.

The Liberian-flagged oil tanker Chios Lion was attacked on Monday 97 nautical miles northwest of the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah, maritime security authorities said.

An unmanned surface vessel “collided” with the tanker, causing minor damage, British Maritime Trade Operations reported.

CEOBS said the oil slick began 106 nautical miles northwest of Hodeidah, a location consistent with Monday’s attack on the Chios Lion.

A picture posted by the aid organization showed an oil slick in the Red Sea near the Farasan marine protected area off the coast of Yemen and Saudi Arabia.

On Tuesday, the Joint Maritime Information Center of a Western naval coalition said the Chios Lion was investigating a possible oil spill following the Houthi attack.

The Houthis have been attacking ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since November. They say their campaign is intended to show their solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza war.

In March, they sank a Belizean-flagged, Lebanese-controlled ship carrying 21,000 tons of ammonium phosphate sulfate fertilizer.

The incident sparked fears that leaking fuel and chemical pollutants could enter the Red Sea, damaging coral reefs and marine life.

“These ongoing attacks on various oil, chemical and cargo tankers not only endanger maritime personnel and shipping in general, but also seriously damage ecosystems in the Red Sea,” said Wim Zwijnenburg of the Dutch peace organization PAX.

“The current attacks pose a further threat to the environment and coastal communities in Yemen,” he told AFP.

ho/dv