MK Strinda: Rebel Houthis from Yemen attack a Norwegian ship with a missile
Strinda at least one missile fired by the Houthi rebels in Yemen, who are supported by Iran, struck a Norwegian tanker, starting a fire. The attack resulted in no casualties. The MT Strinda was carrying feedstock for biofuel to Italy, according to the ship’s owners, despite a Houthi official saying it was carrying oil to Israel.
In a move that the Houthis claim is a demonstration of sympathy for the Palestinian people, the organisation has promised to stop any ships from any country sailing towards Israel until Israel halts its attack in Gaza. Regarding such assaults, which it characterises as “fully enabled by Iran,” the United States has said that it will take “appropriate responses” into consideration. In a televised speech, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed that the ship was attacked on Monday because its crew had disregarded warnings. He stated that in recent days, the organisation has stopped other ships from entering Yemeni seas.
At the entrance to the Red Sea, in the Bab El Mandeb strait, there was an attack on the MT Strinda. According to a statement from the ship’s owners, J Ludwig Mowinckels Rederi, the missile started a fire on board, but it was quickly put out and the vessel was able to sail into a secure port. The thirty-person crew, who are all nationals of India, was undamaged, they claimed. Following a mayday call, a US Navy warship assisted the MT Strinda, according to US authorities.
Yemen on the Arabian Peninsula is divided from Eritrea and Djibouti on the African side by the Bab El Mandeb Strait, a 20-mile-wide strait. Each year, 10% of all trade passes through it in the form of about 17,000 ships. This is the route that all ships must take to enter or exit the Indian Ocean via the Suez Canal. The Houthis, who are battling the Saudi-backed government in Yemen, have identified as a member of a “axis of resistance” that includes organisations with Iranian ties that are against the US, Israel, and the wider West.