A risky operation to salvage an oil tanker attacked by Houthi militants in the Red Sea and avert what could have been one of the largest oil spills in recorded history has been completed, British maritime security company Ambrey and Greece have said.

An oil tanker that burned for weeks in the Red Sea and threatened a massive oil spill has been “successfully” salvaged.

An oil tanker believed to be part of Russia’s efforts to evade sanctions went adrift and had to be towed by a German tugboat Friday in what Germany's foreign minister called a danger to security and tourism in the Baltic Sea.