The Yemeni Armed Forces have blocked the passage of a merchant vessel bound for the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories as it was sailing in the Red Sea, after declaring a decision to block the passage of all ships heading toward Israeli ports in support of the Gaza Strip.
Lebanon’s Arabic-language al-Mayadeen television news network, citing a statement released by Yemen’s Defense Ministry, reported on Sunday that “a proper interaction was carried out with the ship, but it did not pay heed to our warnings.”
The statement added that the vessel was subsequently “blocked from passing through and was forced to turn back.”
On Saturday, the spokesman for the Yemeni Armed Forces Brigadier General Yahya Saree warned that if Gaza does not receive the food and medicines it needs, all the ships passing through Yemen’s territorial waters towards the occupied territories would turn into a “legitimate target.”
He also emphasized that all ships from around the world can continue their commercial activity, except those related to the Israeli regime or destined for the ports of the occupied territories.
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 17,997 people, most of them women and children, in Gaza since. More than 49,229 people 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 have shown 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.
