By Adam Makary, Hatem Maher and Jaidaa Ahmad
(Reuters) -Yemen’s Houthis said on Monday that they targeted three ships in the Red Sea and Arabian Sea, attacks they called part of their efforts to enforce a naval blockade on Israel.
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said in a televised address the vessels were targeted for attempting to approach ports bound for Israel.
According to the latest data from LSEG, all three targeted vessels were Liberia-registered.
One of the vessels, identified by the Houthis as Motaro, was last seen off Yemen’s western coast in the Red Sea, en route from Egypt’s Suez Canal to Shanghai, according to LSEG data.
Another vessel, the SC Montreal, was reportedly targeted in the Arabian Sea while travelling from Seychelles’ Port Victoria to Salalah, Oman.
The third vessel, the Maersk Kowloon, was tracked by LSEG in the western Indian Ocean, also en route from Salalah.
Earlier on Monday, British maritime security firm Ambrey reported two explosions near a merchant vessel travelling 14 nautical miles southwest of Yemen’s Al Dhubab.
Ambrey’s report followed initial statements from the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency, which received information about three explosions related to an incident 25 nautical miles south of Yemen’s port of Mokha, but confirmed that the ship and crew were safe and had continued to their next port of call.
Yemen’s Houthis said they will continue these actions until Israel halts its offensive on Gaza and Lebanon. This poses significant risks to commercial shipping in the region, a critical route for global trade linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.
(Reporting by Adam Makary, Hatem Maher, Jaidaa Taha;Editing by Alison Williams, Helen Popper, William Maclean, Christina Fincher and David Gregorio)
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