Yemen's Houthi rebels reportedly captured a United Arab Emirates (UAE)-flagged Rwabee cargo ship in the Red Sea on Sunday evening local time. The initial news about Rwabee's capture came from the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operation.
As the AP reported, The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operation said only that an attack targeted an unnamed vessel around midnight.
The coordinates reported matched the position of Rwabee, who rarely provided his location through tracking data in recent months.
"Pirates allied with the Iran-backed Houthi militia hijacked a UAE-flagged cargo ship off the coast of Al-Hudaydah province on Sunday," the arab coalition's official spokesman Brigadier General Turki Al-Malki said.
According to him, the ship was conducting a maritime mission from Socotra Island to Jazan Port, when it was targeted by piracy.
The Saudi coalition claimed the ship was carrying hospital equipment used to operate the Saudi Field Hospital in Socotra. Cargo includes ambulances, communication devices, medical equipment, field kitchens, tents, field laundry units, and technical and security support equipment.
"This act of piracy by the Houthi terrorist militia represents a credible threat that highlights the dangers of houthi terrorist militias on freedom of navigation and international trade in the South Red Sea and Bab Al-Mandab Strait," Al-Malki said.
"The militias must immediately release the ship, or the Coalition Forces will take all necessary measures and procedures to deal with these violations, including the use of force if necessary," Al-Malki warned.
Although the Saudi coalition says the cargo ship is carrying medical equipment, the Houthis do not share the same view. A Houthi military spokesman, Yahia Sarei, announced that rebel forces had seized what she described as an Emirati "military cargo ship."
He said the ship was carrying equipment into Yemeni territorial waters "without permission" to engage in "hostile acts."
He said the rebels would provide more details about the seizure. A similar attack occurred in 2016 involving the Emirati ship SWIFT-1, which had been sailing back and forth in the Red Sea between Emirati forces bases in Eritrea and Yemen.
The Emirati government confirms that SWIFT-1 is carrying humanitarian aid; U.N. experts later said they were "not sure of the truth."
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