NEW DELHI: Indian guided missile destroyer INS Visakhapatnam extended help to a merchant vessel that had a fire accident onboard following a missile attack. The vessel has 22 Indians and one Bangladeshi crew onboard. Yemen’s Houthi rebels later claimed responsibility for the attack.
The Indian Navy on Saturday said INS Visakhapatnam, deployed in the Gulf of Aden, responded to a distress call from MV Marlin Luanda on the night of January 26. The destroyer deployed the ship’s team along with firefighting equipment to help the crew onboard the distressed merchant vessel.
As per reports, the vessel was struck by a missile in the Gulf of Aden, after transiting the Red Sea. Houthi rebels claimed that their naval forces carried out an operation targeting the British oil tanker Marlin Luanda.
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea in a statement said the strike was “direct” using “appropriate naval missiles.” The ship is operated on behalf of multinational trading giant Trafigura based out of Singapore.