Yemen's Houthis target Saudi fuel tanker: Coalition

By Fares Karam

RIYADH

A Saudi fuel tanker in the Red Sea came under fire by Yemen’s Houthi rebel group, a Saudi-led military coalition said Tuesday.

The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) quoted coalition spokesman Turki al-Maliki as saying that the vessel had sustained minor damage before the attack was repelled by coalition warships.

The attack reportedly occurred at 13:30 local time while the ship was traversing international waters west of Yemen’s Al-Hudeidah Port, which al-Maliki claimed was controlled by “Iran-backed militias” in reference to the Houthi group.

Al-Maliki said such “terrorist” attacks posed a “serious threat to navigation and maritime commerce in the Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Red Sea”.

The Houthis, for their part, have yet to comment on the coalition’s assertions.

Impoverished Yemen has been wracked by conflict since 2014, when the Houthis overran much of the country, including capital Sanaa.

The conflict escalated in 2015 when Saudi Arabia and its Sunni-Arab allies launched a wide-ranging military campaign aimed at rolling back Houthi gains.

Riyadh has repeatedly accused the Houthis of acting as a proxy force for Shia Iran, Saudi Arabia’s arch-foe in the region.