A Norwegian chemical tanker is reportedly on fire in the Red Sea after a missile attack from the Houthis.
According to reports from an hour ago, the USS Mason responded to a distress call from the M/V Strinda who was battling a fire.
Here’s more from The War Zone:
The M/T Strinda was attacked by a missile coming out of a Houthi-controlled area in Yemen, two U.S. military officials told The War Zone. The vessel is battling a fire, the officials said. It was struck 60 miles north of the narrow Bab el-Mandab Strait, one of those officials told us. The Strinda is a Norwegian-owned chemical tanker, according to its owner, Mowinckel Chemical Tankers AS.
We received additional information about what struck the ship as well as the location of the attack. The Strinda was hit by a land-based cruise missile about 60 nautical miles north of the Bab el-Mandab. No one was injured in the attack and no U.S. vessels were near it when the attack occurred, a U.S. official tells us.
The Arliegh Burke class guided missile destroyer USS Mason responded to an emergency call and is now in sight of the Strinda, three officials told us. All three spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss operational details.
UKMTO WARNING 004/DEC/2023-Update 001
ATTACK
Warnings-2023 (https://t.co/5An1YH0JyE)#MaritimeSecurity #MarSec pic.twitter.com/Sxbsp8WV2Y
— United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) (@UK_MTO) December 11, 2023
This marks the second time in two weeks that the Mason has been involved in a situation involving missiles fired from Yemen. Nov. 27, two ballistic missiles fired from Yemen came down in the Red Sea in the vicinity of the destroyer USS Mason (DDG-87). At the time, the warship was concluding its response to a distress call from the M/V Central Park, a commercial vessel that had itself come under attack from a group of armed raiders that had attempted to board it.
The attack on the Strinda comes days after France said one of its frigates in the Red Sea downed two Houthi drones flying toward it.
This is not the first time this has happened and it won’t be the last if the Houthis are allowed continue. These terrorists are attacking everyone, including American warships. Having a defensive posture in the Red Sea isn’t cutting it.