Greek vessel hit by missile in Red Sea

A Malta-flagged, Greek-owned vessel has been hit with a missile in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen, maritime security firm Ambrey reports It is thought to be the third incident involving the bulk carrier, believed to be named Zografia, in 24 hours.

Tuesday's incident comes as the US military announced it had seized Iranian-supplied weapons bound for the Houthis during an operation last week. Meanwhile, the US has hit more targets in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.

An official told CBS, the BBC's American partner, that the US conducted further strikes on Houthi positions overnight.

The US and UK launched a wave of airstrikes against dozens of Houthi targets on Januart 11 following attacks on shipping in the Red Sea.

The Houthis have vowed to retaliate and on Sunday the US said it had shot down a missile fired towards one of its warships from a Houthi area of Yemen.

Several vessels have been targeted by the movement's fighters since November in protest at Israel's war with Hamas.

The Houthis say they are targeting vessels which are Israeli-owned, flagged or operated, or are heading to Israeli ports.

The Red Sea connects the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal but several shipping lines have announced they are now diverting round the Cape of Good Hope to reach Europe instead.

The US said on Tuesday that analysis from the weapons it seized from a ship near the Yemen coast suggested the Houthis had been using the same kind of weapons in their Red Sea attacks.

"This is the first seizure of lethal, Iranian-supplied advanced conventional weapons (ACW) to the Houthis since the beginning of Houthi attacks against merchant ships in November 2023," US Central Command said in a statement.

Oil tankers passing Turkish straits face delays

According to a Reuters report, at least 20 oil tankers queuing off Turkey to cross from Russia's Black Sea ports to the Mediterranean face further delays as operators race to adhere to new Turkish insurance rules added ahead of a G7 price cap on Russian oil.

Turkish maritime authorities issued a notice in November 2022 asking for additional guarantees from insurers that the transit through the Bosphorus would be covered starting from the beginning of December 2022.

The new rule was announced before a US$60 per barrel price cap was imposed on Russian seaborne crude. Western insurers are required to retain proof that Russian oil covered is sold at or below that price. The industry has a 90-day grace period to comply with the G7 plan.

"Extra coverage from Russian P&I seems to be the way out for tanker operators," the shipping source said, referring to protection and indemnity insurance providers.

We'll see further delays if owners (or) operators can't provide the required guarantees."

Norway's Skuld, among the top tier of P&I clubs, said such insurers cannot provide the level of detail that has been required.

"The Turkish government's requirements go well beyond the general information that is contained in a confirmation of entry letter," Skuld said in a note.

Millions of barrels of oil per day move south from Russian ports through Turkey's Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits into the Mediterranean.

The shipping agency GAC said on Tuesday that 13 vessels were waiting to transit the Bosphorus strait southbound, all of them oil tankers and 10 of them holding Kazakh crude after loading at the Russian port of Novorossiisk.

One tanker which loaded oil at the port cleared the straits over the weekend after providing proof of insurance. Coverage for the Liberia-flagged Vladimir Tikhonov tanker came from Russian insurer.

Only two vessels were scheduled for departure on Tuesday, both coming from Russia.

Tribeca shipping agency said nine oil tankers were waiting to transit the Dardanelles southbound on Tuesday.

GAC also said that average waiting times southbound at the Bosphorus on Tuesday was four days for vessels longer than 200 meters, up from one day in mid-November.

For the Dardanelles strait, average waiting times southbound were also around four days, up from 1-1/2 days in mid-November, Tribeca said.