Military Coalition in Yemen: Houthis Fire at Saudi Oil Tanker

The military coalition in Yemen led by Saudi Arabia announced on Tuesday that a Saudi oil tanker was targeted by Houthi militants in the Red Sea near the port of Hodeidah. The Houthis in Yemen stated that they fired at a military ship in response to attacks that occurred on Monday in Hodeidah province. Reports indicate that the Houthis, who control northern regions of Yemen, have repeatedly launched missile attacks against Saudi Arabia, even targeting Riyadh, the capital, but Saudi Arabia has emphasized that these missiles were intercepted before reaching their targets. The military coalition's statement said: 'The mentioned oil tanker was in international waters at the time of the Houthi-Iranian attack.' The statement noted that the attack occurred at 1:30 PM local time. Saudi Arabia considers the Islamic Republic of Iran to be the main supporter of the Houthi militants, claiming that the weapons and missiles in the hands of the Houthis are supplied by Iran. However, Iran has denied these accusations. The coalition's statement further mentioned: 'One of the coalition's military ships took decisive action to prevent these attacks.' The statement did not specify what weapons were used or which areas were targeted. It stated: 'The attack on the oil tanker caused damage but was ineffective. The tanker continued its route in international waters towards the north, escorted by coalition military ships.' A Reuters journalist referred to a message from Houthi-controlled media, in which the Houthis stated, 'We fired at a coalition military ship in response to the Hodeidah attack that left people homeless.' The Houthis referred to the coalition's attack on Monday in Hodeidah, which destroyed a house and killed 12 family members, including seven children. The director of Al-Thawra Hospital in Hodeidah told the German news agency that one of the attacks targeted a building housing Yemeni refugees. Eyewitnesses reported three airstrikes by Saudi Arabia on Monday. The Secretary-General of the United Nations also called on Tuesday for $2.96 billion in humanitarian aid from the international community to the people of Yemen. Antonio Guterres announced at a donor conference for Yemen in Geneva that humanitarian aid must be made available to the people of Yemen without any preconditions, and all ports in the country must be open for delivering aid, medicine, food, goods, and fuel needed for transport.