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Salvage operation of MV Sounion oil tanker ready to start, no indications of oil spill, EU marine objective says

The salvage operation of the oil tanker MV Sounion, which was recently assaulted by Iran-aligned Houthi militants, is about to start, the European Union's mission in the Red Sea, Aspides, stated on Monday.

Aspides said in a declaration that several fires continued to burn on the Greek-registered vessel, which is packed with about 1 million barrels of petroleum, adding that there were no visible indications of an oil spill

The salvage operation is likely to be intricate and if a spill. occurs, it has the prospective to be amongst the biggest from a ship in documented history and could cause an environmental catastrophe in a location that is particularly unsafe to gain access to.

The MV SOUNION, due to the big amount of petroleum it brings, presents a substantial ecological risk. Private companies are involved in the salvage operation that is about to start, Aspides stated on X.

A source acquainted with the matter informed Reuters that yank boats were ready to operate but it would require an on-spot assessment before a decision is made on whether to move the freight to another vessel or move the ship to a safe port initially.

The EU's marine force said on Monday it will offer protection to the pull boats that will deal with the salvage operation.

The Iran-aligned Houthis have been waging a campaign versus business shipping to support Palestinians in the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

On Monday,

a Saudi-owned crude tanker

and a Panama-flagged oil ship were assaulted in the Red Sea off Yemen, 2 sources familiar with the matter said, although it was unclear if the vessels were hit by Yemeni Houthi militants.

(source: Reuters)