Sailors rescued when Houthi rebels attack oil tanker off Yemen

Dozens of sailors were rescued after Houthi rebels attacked an oil tanker off Yemen.

The crew of the Greek-flagged MT Sounion vessel were bombarded with gunfire and missiles as they were travelling in the Red Sea off Hodeidah port on August 21.

Footage shows the stricken tanker sending out a distress call to another passing ship.

Jesson Yee, one of the Filipino sailors onboard the MT Sounion, said: 'They rained bullets on us. They bombed us and hit our engine. The ship had a hole on its side. We hid, but we were knocked off our feet by the force of the blast. There were lots of glass shards scattered around.'

Hans Cacdac, Secretary of the Philippine Department of Migrant Workers, said in a Wednesday press briefing: 'There were three missile attacks that caused damage to the engine, leading the ship to take on some water, but not enough to sink it. However, the ship is adrift.'

The European Union's Aspides task force, a naval military operation assigned to respond to Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, said it rescued 23 Filipinos and two Russians on the sinking ship.

It added that the tanker's 150,000 tonnes of crude oil now poses an environmental hazard.

The Houthis have claimed responsibility for the attack and claimed the MT Sounion allegedly belonged to a company with ties to Israel.

The Houthis have been attacking international ships crossing the Red Sea in what they said was a campaign of solidarity with Palestinians in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.