Greek-flagged oil tanker on fire and appears to be adrift in Red Sea

Fires broke out on Friday on a Greek-flagged oil tanker this week, with the vessel now appearing to be adrift in the Red Sea, authorities said on Friday.

It wasn't immediately clear what happened to the oil tanker Sounion after it was abandoned by its crew on Thursday and reportedly put at anchor.

The Houthis didn't immediately acknowledge the fire, but they have been conducting a months-long campaign against shipping in the Red Sea over the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. The attacks have disrupted a trade route that typically sees one trillion euros' worth in goods pass through it annually.

The British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre reported the fires in a note to mariners on Friday night.

“UKMTO have received a report that three fires have been observed on vessel,” the centre said. “The vessel appears to be drifting.”

A United States defence official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters, said American officials were aware of the fires and continued to monitor the situation.

The vessel had been staffed by a crew of 25 Filipinos and Russians, as well as four private security personnel, who were taken by a French destroyer to nearby Djibouti, the European Union's Aspides naval mission in the Red Sea said on Thursday.

The Sounion has 150,000 tons of crude oil aboard and represents a “navigational and environmental hazard,” the mission warned. “It is essential that everyone in the area exercises caution and refrains from any actions that could lead to a deterioration of the current situation.”

Late Friday night, the Houthis released footage of an explosion striking the Sounion, their fighters on the water in the distance chanting the group's slogan: “God