Yemen's Houthis release video of fighters placing bombs on Red Sea ship

Yemen's Houthis have released footage showing their fighters boarded and placed explosives on a Greek-flagged tanker, setting off blasts that put the Red Sea at risk of a major oil spill.

The footage released on Thursday shows masked Houthi fighters carrying Kalashnikov-style rifles boarding the Sounion after it was abandoned.

The bridge appeared ransacked. Fighters then rigged explosives over hatches on its deck leading to the oil tankers below. At least six simultaneous blasts could be seen in the footage.

The Houthi-controlled SABA news agency described Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi as saying the Sounion attack shows America "is lying in its claims regarding any deterrence of Yemeni operations supporting Palestine."

"The effectiveness of our operations and their control of the situation is acknowledged by the enemies," al-Houthi said. The vessel had departed from Iraq and was destined for a port near Athens.

The vessel was abandoned earlier, after the Houthis repeatedly attacked it.

The blasts capped the most serious attack in weeks by the Houthis in their campaign, disrupting the $1 trillion in goods that pass through the Red Sea each year over Israel's genocidal war on besieged Gaza.

The Sounion carried some 1 million barrels of oil when the Houthis initially attacked it on August 21 with small arms fire, projectiles and a drone boat.

A French destroyer operating as part of the European Union's Operation Aspides rescued the Sounion's crew of 25 Filipinos and Russians, as well as four private security personnel, after they abandoned the vessel and took them to nearby Djibouti.

Environmental crisis

Western countries and the United Nations have warned any oil spill from the Sounion could devastate the coral reefs and wildlife that call the Red Sea home. The EU's naval force in the region says it has yet to see any oil spill from the Sounion.

Operation Aspides "is preparing to facilitate any courses of action, in coordination with European authorities and neighbouring countries, to avert a catastrophic environmental crisis," the EU mission said.

"Together, we can protect the environment and maintain stability in the region."

On Wednesday, the Houthis suggested they may allow the Sounion to be salvaged, though the group already once blocked crews trying to reach the abandoned vessel, the US military said.

The Houthis have targeted more than 80 vessels with missiles and drones in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza amid Israel's carnage.

They seized one vessel and sank two in the campaign that also killed four sailors. Other missiles and drones have either been intercepted by a US-led coalition in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets.

The group maintains that they target ships linked to Israel, the US or the UK to force an end to Israel's siege and brutal war on Gaza.