A chemical tanker belonging to Israeli interests was hit by an “attack drone launched by Iran” yesterday Saturday in the waters off India, while two oil tankers and an American destroyer sailing in the Red Sea were also targeted by drones launched by the Shia Houthi rebels in Yemen. according to the US military.

The attack on the chemical tanker took place yesterday at 10:00 (local time, 08:00 Greek time). It caused a fire on the ship which was extinguished, while there were no casualties, the US Department of Defense said. The ship Chem Plutounder the flag of Liberia, belongs to Japanese shipping company and it is managed by a Dutch company, he clarified.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the Dutch company that manages Chem Pluto “linked to Israeli shipping magnate Idan Ofer“.

The attack took place in Arabian Sea200 nautical miles southwest of the Indian port of Bereval in the state of Gujarat, Ambrey and the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said.

The Indian Navy said it had dispatched an aircraft and a warship to the area to assist the MV Chem Pluto.

While it is not clear who launched the drone, the attack is the latest in a series of drone and missile attacks launched in recent weeks in the Red Sea by the Houthiwhere supported by Iranas the war between Israel and Hamas rages on in the Gaza Strip.

In November, an Israeli merchant ship was damaged in the Indian Ocean by a drone strike, which Washington blamed on Iran.

Two oil tankers

At the same time, one yesterday tanker owned by an Indian-flagged Gabon shipping company, the MN Saibabaissued a distress signal while in the Red Sea after being hit by a drone that came from Yemen’s Houthi-controlled areas, the US military’s Middle East Command (CENTCOM) announced, clarifying that there were no casualties.

Another oil tanker, the MV Blaamanen under Norwegian flag, also attacked by drone launched by the Houthis, but without being hit, according to the same source.

These were the 14th and 15th attacks on merchant ships launched by Yemeni rebels in the Red Sea since Oct. 17, CENTCOM noted.

A US destroyer patrolling the Red Sea, the USS Laboon, yesterday shot down four other Houthi attack drones that targeted it.

These attacks on merchant ships since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas on October 7 have forced major shipping companies to reroute their ships to South Africa, despite the greater cost of the latter. long journey.

The Houthis, who control large areas of Yemen, reiterate that they will continue their attacks if not enough food and medicine enter the besieged Gaza Strip, which is bombarded relentlessly by Israel.

Warnings for the “closure” of the Mediterranean from Tehran – Reaction from the US and Britain

Yesterday, an official in Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, Mohammad Reza Naqdi, warned that other sea routes would become dangerous if the war between Israel and Hamas continued.

“As crimes continue, America and its allies should expect the birth of new resistance forces and the closure of other shipping lanes. They should expect the closing of the Mediterranean soonof Gibraltar and other sea lanes,” he added, without giving further details.

The Red Sea connects the Mediterranean with the Indian Ocean and thus Europe with Asia. About 2,000 ships pass through the Suez Canal every year, a number that corresponds to almost 40% of world trade.

The manufacture, the White House blamed Iran that it is “actively involved in the planning” of these attacks as it provides the Houthis with information as well as “modern military equipment”, without which the Shia rebels “would have difficulty locating and hitting” the ships.

However, Tehran rejects US accusations that it provides military hardware to the rebels, although it admits it politically supports the Houthis.

On December 18, the US announced the formation of a coalition for the defense of navigation in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Adenin which approximately 20 countries participate in the framework of “Operation Prosperity Guardian”.

Read about it: ‘Guardian of Prosperity’: The West’s imposing strike force against the Houthis with dozens of warheads – See map

In the meantime the British Foreign Secretary David Cameron accused Iran in an interview published today in a British newspaper of exerting “a completely malevolent influence in the region and the world”.

“Iran exerts a completely malevolent influence on the region and the world – that’s for sure,” Cameron told the Sunday Telegraph.

“There are the Houthis, Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed paramilitary groups in Iraq that are attacking British and American bases. And of course Hamas,” added the British minister. “I think it’s extremely important that Iran gets an absolutely clear message: this escalation will not be tolerated.”