Houthi rebels attacked a ship in the middle of February. The ship has been left in the sea until it can be towed because of growing concerns about an oil spill.
A cargo ship flying the flag of Belize called Rubymar was attacked by the Houthis, a terrorist group backed by Iran. They said they did a “catastrophic attack.” The ship’s crew left it when the Houthis said there was a “risk of potentially sinking in the Gulf of Aden.” Central Command of the United States says the attack left an 18-mile-long oil slick.
The Central Command said this was even more dangerous, saying, “The M/V Rubymar was carrying over 41,000 tons of fertilizer when it was attacked. This could spill into the Red Sea and make this environmental disaster worse.”
The ship is now ready for the U.S. Navy to take it to the port of Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. They’ve had trouble finding a port that will take the tanker, and they haven’t said for sure that Saudi Arabian ports will take the tanker.
Attacks like these make people more worried because an oil spill can hurt the environment for a long time. It might affect the sea life and their homes.
“Oil is a highly toxic substance, so any oil spill has negative effects on the surrounding environment and communities. The severity of these effects depends on things like the amount of oil that is released and the flow of the water.”
The militant Houthi group has been striking ships that go through the Red Sea to try to keep Israeli ships away. However, it has also scared away many ships that need to go through the Red Sea for business and trade.
