'Unknown projectile' hits tanker off Saudi Arabia's Red Sea Coast, vessel on fire, says UK maritime agency

A tanker caught fire after being hit by an “unknown projectile” off Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast, a UK maritime agency said, amid renewed Houthi threats targeting shipping linked to the region.The incident was reported around 63 nautical miles west of Yanbu. (X/@UK_MTO)The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said a tanker was hit by an “unknown projectile”, triggering a fire on the vessel’s main deck.The agency said all crew members were safe and accounted for and that there had been no reported environmental impact. The incident occurred 63 nautical miles west of the Saudi city of Yanbu, which is located several hundred kilometres north of Yemen.Also Read: Yemen's Houthis say attacked airport, Aramco facility in Saudi Arabia's NajranBritish maritime security firm Vanguard Tech said the vessel, which was Saudi-flagged, had been struck by a missile and caught fire.Houthi attacks on Saudi ArabiaAlthough the Houthis have not claimed responsibility for the latest tanker incident, the attack comes amid a recent escalation in the region, with the Iran-backed group carrying out several attacks targeting Saudi territory, infrastructure and shipping in recent weeks.Last month, the Houthis announced a maritime blockade targeting Saudi Arabia and began targeting Saudi-linked ships, airports and oil facilities following a series of tit-for-tat attacks. The escalation came after an Iranian plane arrived in Yemen’s capital Sanaa, according to AFP.Also Read: Yemen government says Houthi missiles kill at least four civilians in port cityOn Thursday, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed the group had carried out two drone attacks targeting an airport and an Aramco facility in Saudi Arabia’s southern Najran region, near the Yemeni border.Earlier, on August 9, the Houthis had also claimed responsibility for an attack on an Aramco facility in Saudi Arabia’s Jazan region, Reuters reported. Saree said the group had “succeeded in targeting the Aramco refinery in Jazan with a drone, and the strike was precise”, claiming the attack was carried out in response to Saudi incursions into northwestern Yemen.Saudi Arabia, however, said a fire broke out at the Aramco facility in Jazan and was extinguished by the company’s industrial security firefighting teams, with no injuries reported.The escalation has also prompted a warning from Iran’s Revolutionary Guards. “Saudi Arabia will certainly be unable to contain Yemen and Ansarullah or remain safe from their attacks,” Guards spokesman Hossein Mohebi told Defa Press, using another name for the Houthis.“As we have seen in recent days, the more Saudi Arabia attacks, the more it is hit in return,” he said.(With inputs from AFP, Reuters)