The Al-Hadath channel in Saudi Arabia reported Sunday that it had received information indicating that the Iranian-backed Houthi militia – which has taken over parts of Yemen – managed to seize an Israeli merchant vessel near the Persian Gulf coast. The IDF later confirmed the incident, saying, "The hijacking of a cargo ship by the Houthis near Yemen in the southern Red Sea is a very grave incident of global consequence. The ship departed Turkey on its way to India, staffed by civilians of various nationalities, not including Israelis. It is not an Israeli ship." Israel Hayom has been able to confirm that it is partially owned by an Israeli, but it is not operated by Israel. The Israeli government said this was "Iranian terrorism."
The Prime Minister's Office said the following: "Israel strongly condemns the Iranian attack against an international vessel. The ship, which is owned by a British company and is operated by a Japanese firm, was hijacked with Iran guidance by the Yemenite Houthi militia. Onboard the vessel are 25 crew members of various nationalities including Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Filipino, and Mexican. No Israelis are onboard. This is another act of Iranian terrorism and constitutes a leap forward in Iran's aggression against the citizens of the free world, with international consequences regarding the security of the global shipping lanes."
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Recently, the head of the Houthi militia threatened to target Israeli ships in the Red Sea and the Houthis have fired missiles and drones on Israel, which were successfully intercepted.
Video: Israel exposes Hamas network beneath and next to Gaza's hospitals / Credit: Reuters
According to the publication, the ship's callsign is Galaxy Leader.
Video: IDF's Arrow system intercepts an incoming target heading toward Eilat / Defense Ministry
According to a ship-monitoring website, the ship was detected on Saturday in the Red Sea, sailing under the Bahamas flag. In the past, Israeli-owned vessels were attacked by Iranian entities but this is likely the first such incident by Houthis.
According to a report on the Al-Arabiya network, the ship has a crew of 22 people.
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