Houthis attacked northbound Norwegian tanker STRINDA in Bab al-Mandab Strait area at around 2030 UTC on Monday Dec. 11, some 14 nm west of Yemeni port of Al Mukha, firstly ordering the ship to sail to Yemeni waters, and later after she changed course and tried to sail further west away from Yemeni coast, rebels fired a missile. The ship according to the US Navy, UKMTO and Arabian sources, suffered damages and fire. Tanker’s AIS is off since around 2200 UTC Dec 11.
She’s en route from Singapore to, according to previous AIS records, Italy. Houthis vowed to attack Israeli-owned or bound ships, so why they decided to attack this one, is a mystery. Most probably, they just don’t care much enough to thoroughly search for ships details, and decided to attack most convenient target, believing themselves to be immune from retaliation.
Ship’s crew is said to be safe, let’s hope it is so. A mob unleashed wave of terror attacks in one of most important global shipping routes, and it’s like nobody can do anything about it.
