Yahya Saree, the group’s military spokesman, said on Tuesday that Yemeni Houthis launched a missile attack on the MADO fuel tanker in the Red Sea and cruise missiles at the Israeli port and resort region of Eilat.
The MADO tanker was carrying Marshall Islands-flagged liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to Singapore from Saudi Arabia, maritime shipping trackers showed. Houthis labelled it as American, but the Equasis ship database shows it belongs to Greek company Naftomar Shipping & Trading Co Ltd. Naftomar did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Iranian Houthi militants have repeatedly launched drones and missiles at international commercial ships in the Red Sea region since mid-November, saying they were acting in solidarity with Palestinians opposed to Israel’s military attack in Gaza.
The attacks have disrupted global shipping, forcing companies to make longer and more expensive voyages across southern Africa.
The US and Britain and other naval forces retaliated against Houthi targets.
In a separate attack, Houthi fighters killed at least 18 people in the central Yemeni province of Al Bayda, Yemen’s official Saba news agency said on Tuesday.
The Houthis control most of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa and the main Red Sea port of Hodeidah. The militants have been fighting a civil war since 2014 with Yemen’s internationally recognised government, which is backed by Western countries and Saudi Arabia.
