By Irina Slav of OilPrice

The Yemeni Houthis reportedly hit two tankers in the Red Sea on Monday, one of them Saudi-flagged.

According to a Reuters report citing U.S. military sources, which said one of the targets hit on Monday was a Panama-flagged vessel named Blue Lagoon I and the other was Saudi-flagged Amjad. The Houthis took responsibility for the Blue Lagoon I hit, Reuters reported, but made no mention of the Saudi-flagged vessel.

Yesterday, the Houthis targeted the Saudi oil tanker “Amjad”, which was loaded with two million barrels of crude oil and was heading from Ras Tanura in Saudi Arabia to Ain Sokhna in Egypt. The map below shows the location of the ship about an hour ago according to kpler, which… https://t.co/FJSfbelnvT

— Anas Alhajji (@anasalhajji) September 3, 2024

According to an AP report, Blue Lagoon I had been traveling to an undisclosed location from the Russian port of Ust Luga, broadcasting that it carried Russian crude on board. The Houthis had previously said they would not target Russian or Middle Eastern ships.

There was no major damage to either of the tankers, which were close to each other when they were hit. Both were able to continue on their way after the strikes. The Saudi-flagged vessel has a capacity for up to 2 million barrels of crude while Blue Lagoon I can carry up to 1 million barrels.

The AP cited the Joint Maritime Information Center, a unit set up to track the Houthis’ activity in the Red Sea and led by the U.S. Army, as saying that the Blue Lagoon I tanker “was targeted due to other vessels within its company structure making recent port calls in Israel.”

“These reckless acts of terrorism by the Houthis continue to destabilize regional and global commerce, as well as put the lives of civilian mariners and maritime ecosystems at risk,” the U.S. Central Command said, as quoted by the AP.

The Houthis have been targeting vessels passing through the Bab el Mandeb strait since last November in reaction to Israeli bombings of Gaza. Initially, the group said it would only target Israeli ships and those sailing under flags of Israeli allies but it has since expanded its campaign. An attempt by the U.S. and some European allies to put an end to the attacks has so far failed to produce any results.

*   *   *

The Houthis have targeted more than 80 merchant ships with missiles and drones since Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza started in October. This continued turmoil in the Red Sea shows how the West’s “credibility and deterrence” is quickly eroding. 

Where is the rightful outrage from environmentalists? Thousands of tons of crude oil will now pour into the Red Sea.
This is a clear sign of the collapse of American credibility and deterrence. Letting the Iranian proxy Houthis shut off a major maritime seaway is an epic fail.… https://t.co/ThmzZ5FAED

— ErikDPrince (@realErikDPrince) August 24, 2024

Given the increasing risks in the southern Red Sea and one of the world’s critical maritime chokepoints, oil markets are ignoring and instead focusing on weak China data. 

“Brent/WTI heavy down 2% … following through on weak China data, OPEC headlines last week …. despite Libyan export halt. Timely call this Thursday after GIR lowered Brent range to $70-85 last week,” Goldman’s Ryan Novak told clients this AM.