Saudi Arabia's military coalition in Yemen on Monday (November 18th) accused Iranian-backed Shiite Huthi rebels of seizing a ship on Sunday night that was towing a South Korean drilling rig at the southern end of the country. the Red Sea.
In Seoul, a Foreign Ministry official said on Tuesday that two South Korean vessels had been seized in the southern Red Sea. Another representative of South Korean diplomacy said that two Korean nationals were on board one of the ships.
"Terrorist operation"
A senior Houthi representative told Reuters that Shiite troops had seized "a suspicious vessel" in the Red Sea and that crew members were being treated well. "The Yemeni coastguards (...) are checking if (the ship) belongs to the countries of aggression or to South Korea, in which case it will be handed over once the legal procedures have been carried out," said Mohammed Ali al-Houthi.
According to Al Masirah, a television channel owned by the Houthis, three ships were seized near the island of Ouqban, including one belonging to Saudi Arabia. The Saudi coalition has denounced a "terrorist operation" threatening international freedom of navigation and world trade.
With Reuters