Yemeni rebels have seized an Emirati-flagged vessel in the Red Sea, with the insurgents and the Saudi-led coalition giving contrasting explanations for the latest escalation in a seven-year war.’s internationally recognised government, said on Monday that the vessel was carrying medical supplies but the rebels said they had seized “a military cargo ship with military equipment”.
In a statement cited by the official Saudi Press Agency, he said the vessel was travelling from Yemen’s Socotra island, off the country’s south coast. It was returning to the Saudi city of Jazan carrying medical supplies after finishing a mission to set up a field hospital on the island, Malki said. The Houthis released videos showing what they claimed was ammunition on board the ship, underlining their belief that the United Arab Emirates is behind the recent assaults in Shabwa governorate that have forced the Houthis to make a rare territorial retreat.
The episode underlines how the UAE remains intricately involved in the war in Yemen despite claims two years ago that it had pulled back from the fighting.Hans Grundberg, the UN special envoy, last week said the increase in fighting “undermines the prospects of reaching a sustainable political settlement to end the conflict in Yemen”.