Sanaa, Yemen, Aug. 5 (ANI): Yemen’s Houthi rebels announced Wednesday that they carried out a targeted strike against a Saudi oil tanker in the northern Red Sea, describing the operation as part of an escalating maritime blockade.
In an official statement posted on X, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the operation targeted the Saudi oil tanker Wafaa off the coast of the port city of Yanbu.
According to Saree, the attack was carried out “with a number of ballistic missiles, and the strike was accurate, by the grace of Allah.”
Highlighting the broader scope of the group’s maritime campaign, Saree said the latest attack brings the total number of Saudi oil vessels targeted since the maritime ban began last month to eight.
“With this operation, the total number of ships targeted by our forces has reached eight Saudi oil ships since the start of the maritime ban on July 22. Meanwhile, the total number of ships prevented and forced to retreat and return in the Red and Arabian Seas has reached 29 Saudi oil ships,” he said.
The spokesperson added that after efforts to tighten restrictions around the Bab al-Mandab Strait in the southern Red Sea, “the Saudi enemy moved to divert the route of its oil ships toward the northern Red Sea.”
In response to the rerouting of shipping traffic, Saree warned that future operations would continue.
“The Yemeni Armed Forces emphasize that their operations will continue and escalate in targeting Saudi oil ships in the northern Red Sea to close all outlets to it and prevent it from passing, in order to establish the equation of ‘siege for siege,’ regardless of the results and repercussions,” he said.
Last week, Saudi Arabia and 13 other nations agreed to establish a defensive naval alliance to protect commercial vessels transiting key maritime chokepoints, including the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the Red Sea, and the Gulf of Aden, the Saudi Ministry of Defense announced Thursday.
The development comes amid ongoing maritime disruptions caused by the Iranian-backed Houthi movement’s naval blockade targeting Saudi Arabia. Combined with continued shipping bottlenecks resulting from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the security threats have heightened global energy security concerns and pushed crude oil prices toward $90 per barrel.
The Saudi Ministry of Defense identified the coalition’s founding members as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Yemen, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Sudan, Djibouti, and Somalia.
The agreement was formalized during a military conference in Riyadh attended by defense chiefs and delegates from 43 countries, along with representatives of the European Union. Participants reviewed the proposed founding charter during sessions held both in person and by video conference, according to the ministry. (ANI)
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