Yemeni Armed Forces claim responsibility for a missile strike on a Norwegian-flagged tanker in the Red Sea as it was heading towards an Israeli port.
Speaking at a press briefing broadcast live from the Yemeni capital city of Sana’a on Tuesday, spokesman for the Yemeni Armed Forces Brigadier General Yahya Saree said the strike on the oil tanker Strinda was a “victory” for the Palestinians getting killed in an Israeli “massacre.”
The strike was “a victory for the oppressed Palestinian people, who are currently being subjected to massacre, destruction, and siege in the Gaza Strip, and in response to the calls from freedom-loving Yemenis and people from other Muslim nations,” Saree said.
“The naval forces of the Yemeni Armed Forces carried out a qualitative military operation against the Norwegian ship Strinda, which was loaded with oil,” bound for Israel, the military spokesman added claiming responsibility for the missile strike a day earlier.
Saree said that Yemeni forces targeted the ship near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait with “an appropriate naval cruise missile.”
According to Saree, over the past two days, Yemeni Armed Forces have blocked passage of several Israel-bound ships.
“Yemeni naval forces did not opt to target the Norwegian-flagged oil tanker till after its crew rejected all warnings and did not pay heed to any of our calls to stop,” he said.
Saree warned that the Yemeni Armed Forces will not hesitate to target any ship that “violates the terms of our previous statements.”
“Yemeni forces reiterate that they will continue to target all ships in the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea bound for Israeli ports, regardless of their nationality unless our steadfast brethren in the Gaza Strip receive the food and medicines they need,” he stated.
Earlier, the US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) had issued a statement, saying an anti-ship cruise missile “launched from a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen” hit the Strinda.
“There were no US ships in the vicinity at the time of the attack, but the USS Mason responded … and is currently rendering assistance,” the statement said.
The private intelligence firms Ambrey and Dryad Global confirmed the attack happened near the crucial Bab el-Mandeb Strait separating East Africa from the Arabian Peninsula.
Yemenis have declared their open support for Palestine’s struggle against the Israeli occupation since the regime launched a devastating war on Gaza on October 7 after the territory’s Palestinian resistance movements carried out a surprise retaliatory attack, dubbed Operation Al-Aqsa Storm, against the occupying entity.
The relentless Israeli military campaign against Gaza has killed at least 18,205 people, most of them women and children, in Gaza since. Another 49,645 individuals have been wounded as well.
On December 4, the Yemeni army targeted two Israeli ships in the Red Sea as they were attempting to cross the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Reports revealed that Israeli shipping companies have already decided to reroute their vessels in fear of attacks by Yemeni forces.
Yemeni forces have also launched missile and drone attacks on targets in the Israeli-occupied territories of Palestine after the occupying regime’s aggression on Gaza.
