An Indian-flagged crude oil tanker is among two vessels that came under drone attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels in the Southern Red Sea, the US Central Command has said. This happened immediately after the Arabian Sea drone attack on a merchant vessel carrying about 20 Indian crew members.
However, shortly after the US Central Command statement, the Indian Navy said, as per media reports, that the drone-hit crude oil tanker was not Indian-flagged. This ship is reportedly carrying 25 Indian crew members.
The US Central Command said in a statement that on December 23, two Houthi anti-ship ballistic missiles were fired into international shipping lanes in the Southern Red Sea from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen. No ships reported being impacted by the ballistic missiles.
Between 3pm and 8pm (Sanaa time), the USS Laboon (DDG 58) was patrolling in the Southern Red Sea as part of Operation Prosperity Guardian (OPG) and shot down four unmanned aerial drones originating from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen that were inbound to the USS Laboon. There were no injuries or damage in this incident.
At approximately 8pm (Sanaa time), US Naval Forces Central Command received reports from two ships in the Southern Red Sea that they were under attack.
The M/V Blaamanen, a Norwegian-flagged, owned, and operated chemical/oil tanker, reported a near miss of a Houthi one-way attack drone with no injuries or damage reported.
A second vessel, the M/V Saibaba, a Gabon-owned, Indian-flagged crude oil tanker, reported that it was hit by a one-way attack drone with no injuries reported.
The USS Laboon responded to the distress calls from these attacks. The US Central Command said that these attacks represent the 14th and 15th attacks on commercial shipping by Houthi militants since October 17.
Iran-backed Houthi rebels have stepped up attacks on ships in the Red Sea amid the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Attack drone hits merchant vessel off India’s west coast
A merchant vessel, with around 20 Indian crew members, was hit by a suspected drone about 217 nautical miles off the Porbandar coast in the Arabian Sea yesterday, but there was no report of any casualties in the incident, Indian military sources and a maritime security agency said.
A P-8I long-range maritime surveillance aircraft — deployed by the Indian Navy after the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported the attack — ascertained the safety of the vessel, MV Chem Pluto, and its crew, the sources said.
The Indian Coast Guard said that the vessel then started making its way towards the Mumbai port for undertaking damage assessment and repairs on its power generation systems.
“The Coast Guard Dornier aircraft has sanitised the area and established communication with Chem Pluto,” it said. “The vessel is likely to enter Mumbai and [it] sought escort assistance due to steering issues. Indian Coast Guard Ship Vikram will be escorting the ship during its passage. The Indian Coast Guard Operations Centre is monitoring the situation closely,” said a late night statement.
Earlier, the Indian Navy dispatched a frontline warship to assist the merchant ship.
The UKMTO, which operates under Britain’s Royal Navy, said that it had received a report of an attack by an Uncrewed Aerial System (UAS) on a vessel, causing an explosion and fire. The incident took place 200 nautical miles South West of Veraval in India, it said, adding that the fire was “extinguished” and there were no casualties.
It is learnt that the vessel, sailing under a Liberian flag, was carrying crude oil from Al Jubail port in Saudi Arabia to New Mangalore port. Also, as per the information available, MV Chem Pluto switched off its Automatic Identification System (AIS) following the attack. The AIS enables tracking of a ship.
Indian Navy officials said that a maritime patrol aircraft was sent following the incident, and it flew overhead the merchant vessel and established contact with it. “The aircraft ascertained the safety of the vessel and its crew,” a Navy official told the Press Trust of India.
The Indian Navy’s deployment of the maritime patrol aircraft and the warship came days after it swiftly responded to the hijacking of a Malta-flagged cargo vessel by pirates in the Arabian Sea. The hijacking of the cargo vessel was reported on December 14.