The Houthis hijacked a ship in the Red Sea operated by a Japanese group. In October, the Yemeni rebel group said it would carry out attacks against Israel until the conflict in Gaza ended.
The government of Japan “strongly” condemned this Monday, November 20, the seizure in the Red Sea of a commercial ship operated by a Japanese group by the Yemeni Houthi rebel group.
“We have received reports that the car transport ship Galaxy Leader, operated by Nippon Yusen, was captured by the Houthis while sailing south through the Red Sea, off the coast of Yemen,” the Japanese government spokesman said.
The government strongly condemns such an act,” Hirokazu Matsuno added.
On Sunday, one of the Houthi leaders told Agence France-Press (AFP) that he had seized and taken control of a commercial ship owned by an Israeli businessman.
A maritime source in the rebel-held port of Hodeidah said the group “seized a commercial ship taking it to Al-Salif port in Hodeidah.”
This information comes later The Yemeni rebel group has warned that it will attack all ships owned or operated by Israeli companies or flying the Israeli flag in the Red Sea. in response to the offensive against the Gaza Strip following the October 7 attacks by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas.
In turn, the Israeli army denied that it was an Israeli ship. “The ship left Turkey bound for India, with civilians of various nationalities on board, but no Israelis. She is not an Israeli ship,” the army stressed. According to the Japanese Ministry of Transportation, there were no Japanese citizens on board either.
The Houthis, who control Yemen’s capital Sanaa, are “part of the axis of resistance” against Israel, which includes Iranian-backed groups such as Palestinian Hamas and Lebanese Hezbollah.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office “strongly condemned the Iranian attack on an international ship.” “This is a new act of Iranian terrorism,” he said in a statement. “The ship, which belongs to a British company and is operated by a Japanese company, was hijacked under the direction of Iran by the Yemeni Houthi militia,” Netanyahu concluded.
Nippon Yusen, the ship’s Japanese operator, said today that it could not immediately confirm who owned the ship.
The Houthis announced, at the end of October, that they would carry out attacks against Israel until it ended its offensive against Gaza, after which they launched several missile and drone launches into Israeli territory to defend “the right of the Palestinian people.” to legitimate defense.”
Source: Observadora
