Houthis release footage of attack on oil tanker

Houthi rebels release footage showing them striking the Chios Lion oil tanker in the Red Sea.

Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Tuesday released footage of them striking the Chios Lion oil tanker in the Red Sea a day earlier.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Monday that the Iranian-backed Houthis attacked the MT Chios Lion, a Liberian-flagged, Marshall Islands-owned, Greek-operated crude oil tanker with a USV in the Red Sea.

Separately, the rebels also launched multiple attacks against MT Bentley I, a Panama-flagged, Israel-owned, Monaco-operated tanker vessel in the Red Sea which was carrying vegetable oil from Russia to China.

The Iranian-backed Houthis have upped their attacks in the region since the start of the war in Gaza, having launched drones towards southern Israel and targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea region.

Last week, the Houhis claimed responsibility for launching drones towards the port city of Eilat, saying they had carried out a joint military operation with the Iraqi Islamic Resistance.

Two weeks ago, the Iranian-backed rebels claimed they conducted four military operations targeting four ships in the Red, Arabian and Mediterranean Seas as well as the Indian Ocean, which they said were "linked to the United States, the United Kingdom and Israel".

In the wake of the uptick in Houthi attacks, the US formed a coalition, made up of more than 20 countries, aimed at safeguarding commercial traffic in the Red Sea from attacks by the Houthis.

In mid-January, with support from other countries, the US and Britain targeted just under 30 Houthi locations with 150 different weapons. They have since carried out several rounds of strikes against Houthi targets.

The Houthis have been unfazed by the strikes, saying that the campaign against the "Zionist enemy" will continue and that the attacks against the American and British ships will not stop.

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