Houthis hijack UAE-flagged cargo ship off Yemen

Houthi rebels have hijacked a UAE-flagged cargo ship off the coast of Yemen's Al Hudaydah Governorate.

Brigadier General Turki Al Malki, official spokesperson of the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen, said the vessel (RWABEE) was hijacked on Sunday (11:57 pm) while sailing off the coast of Al Hudaydah.

He added that the ship, carrying medical equipment from a shuttered field hospital, was heading to the Saudi port of Jazan, from the Yemeni island of Socotra.

"This act of Piracy is a credible threat that highlights the danger of the terrorist Houthi militia on the freedom of navigation and international trade in the South Red Sea and Bab Al-Mandab Strait.

"The act violates the customary International Humanitarian Law, the San Remo Manual on Armed Conflicts at Sea and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), said Al Malki.

"The militia must promptly release the ship, or the Coalition Forces will undertake all necessary measures and procedures to handle this violation, including the use of force if necessary," he added.