The Greek-flagged oil tanker Sounion was hit by the Houthis off the coast of Hodeida on August 21 while carrying 150,000 metric tons of crude oil.

In a post on X, CENTCOM said "salvage efforts are underway" in the southern Red Sea for the disabled vessel, "which is still on fire and threatens the possibility of a major environmental disaster."

The Iran-allied rebels said they had booby-trapped and detonated charges on the ship.

CENTCOM condemned such Houthi attacks as "reckless" and promised to "continue to work with international partners and allies" to protect trade and mitigate environmental impacts in the region.

The European Union's Red Sea naval mission, Aspides, said earlier in the day that it would "provide protection to the tug boats, that will deal with the salvage operation and facilitate their efforts to prevent an environmental disaster," according to a post on X.

"Several fires continue to burn on the vessel's main deck," the mission added, noting that there were "no visible signs of an oil spill."

The Sounion's crew, made up of 23 Filipinos and two Russians, was rescued the day after the attack by a French frigate serving with Aspides.

The EU naval force was formed in February to protect merchant vessels in the Red Sea from attacks by the Houthi rebels, who have waged a campaign against Israel-linked shipping that they say is intended to show solidarity with Palestinians suffering under Israel's assault on Gaza.

According to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency, two other ships were struck in attacks off the coast of Yemen on Monday.

CENTCOM reported the two ships were both crude oil tankers, one flagged by Panama and the other flagged by Saudi Arabia, with the latter vessel carrying approximately two million barrels of crude oil.

*This story was edited by Ahram Online.