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Yemen’s Houthi group hijacks a cargo ship linked to Israel. A total of 25 crew members were taken hostage. Photo/Kristijan Bracun/Marine Traffic
SANAA – Yemen’s Houthi militia group has hijacked a cargo ship linked to Israel on the important Red Sea shipping route on Sunday. A total of 25 crew members were taken hostage.
The actions of this Iranian-allied militia group have increasingly raised concerns that the Israel-Hamas war will spread.
The Houthi group said they hijacked the ship because of its ties to Israel.
They threatened to continue targeting ships in international waters associated with or owned by Israel until the brutal Zionist military invasion of Gaza, Palestine, was ended.
“All ships belonging to Israel or dealing with it will be legitimate targets,” said the Houthi group, as quoted by AP, Monday (20/11/2023).
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office blamed the Houthis for the attack on the Bahamas-flagged Galaxy Leader, a vehicle carrier affiliated with the Israeli billionaire.
It was stated that the ship’s 25 crew members had various nationalities, including Bulgarian, Filipino, Mexican and Ukrainian, but there were no Israelis on board the ship.
The Houthis said they treated the crew in accordance with Islamic values, but did not elaborate on what that meant.
Netanyahu’s office condemned the ship hijacking. “It was an act of Iranian terror,” the office said, blaming Tehran for the Houthis’ actions.
