Saudi authorities confirm 'external source' caused oil tanker blast, blame Houthi rebels

An oil tanker off Saudi Arabia’s port city Jeddah suffered an explosion early on December 14 after being hit by an "external source", Associated Press reported. While the Saudi government did not acknowledge the attack immediately, it later revealed that the fuel-carrying vessel was hit by an explosive-laden boat a few miles from Jeddah. Meanwhile, experts and observers have blamed it on Houthi rebels, who have been battling Saudi Arabia in Yemen.

BW Rhine (Singapore-flagged LR1 Product tanker built-in 2008) was hit from an external source whilst discharging at Jeddah, Saudi Arabia at approximately 00:40 local time on 14 December 2020, causing an explosion and subsequent fire onboard.

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'Terrorist assault' 

In a statement, Singapore based Hafnia, which owned the oil carrying 'BW Rhine', said that the ship was struck by a blast in Jeddah during a "terrorist" assault. However, all the 22 sailors on board the ship escaped the explosion uninjured. 

“The attack resulted in a small fire, which emergency units successfully extinguished. The incident did not result in any casualties, and there was no damage caused to the unloading facilities, nor any effect on supplies,” Saudi Arabia ministry of oil added, as stated by the state news agency SPA.

In the aftermath, Hafnia revealed that the ship crew had put out the fire. They added that a part of the ship’s hull had been damaged and warned the Saudi authorities of a possible oil leak that could harm marine life. 

Earlier in November, another explosion damaged a Greek-managed tanker in the Saudi port of Shuqaiq. The kingdom later blamed Yemen’s Houthi rebels for the mine attack. However, Iranian-backed Houthi rebels who are battling against government forces, backed by Saudi Arabia in Yemen did not comment on the issue. 

Read: Explosion Reportedly Strikes Ship Off Jiddah, Saudi Arabia

Read: Explosion reportedly strikes ship off Jiddah, Saudi Arabia

(With inputs from AP)

Image Credits: AP