Yemen Seizes UAE Vessel Transporting Military Medical Supplies

Saudi-led coalition says their vessel carrying medical equipment was seized off the coast of Hodeidah by Yemen soldiers.

The Yemen Houthi military spokesman, Yahia Saree declared on Monday on Twitter that its soldiers seized the vessel in the Red Sea,  claiming it carried military supplies and entered Yemeni waters without authorisation.

The UAE claimed the ship was carrying medical equipment from a dismantled Saudi field hospital and stated that the Houthis had committed an act of armed piracy involving the vessel.

On Monday, the UAE, Brigadier-General Turki al-Malki, added that “The Houthi militia must immediately release the ship, otherwise the coalition forces shall take all necessary measures to deal with this violation, including the use of force."

Yemen has been plunged into chaos since 2014 that Saudi Arabia has been launching thousands of air raids in Yemen. Markets, schools and hospitals were attacked and the Houthi forces have regularly retaliated by sending drones and firing missiles into Saudi Arabian cities. Thousands of people have been killed in the fights.