The Houthi rebels of Yemen announced this Wednesday that they have carried out an attack against a Saudi oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden, as part of their "blockade against blockade" strategy against Riyadh.
"The Armed Forces of Yemen (...) have managed to attack the Saudi tanker 'Daisy' in the Gulf of Aden with a ballistic missile; the operation has successfully achieved its objective (...) and the ship has been damaged and has been forced to turn back," stated their military spokesman, Yahya Sari, on social media.
The Houthi spokesman has presented this action as part of the maritime siege imposed on the Saudi kingdom: "This attack is part of the imposition of a maritime navigation ban on the Saudi enemy, according to the 'blockade for blockade' formula."
Likewise, he reiterated that the Houthi forces "will not allow the passage of any ship, whether from the south or from the north of the Red Sea, until the just demands of our people are met and the blockade on them is lifted."
Hours earlier, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center (UKMTO) had reported a "strong explosion" recorded during the day near an oil tanker sailing southeast of Aden.
The agency, dependent on the British Navy, explained in a brief note disseminated on social media that the "incident" occurred "95 nautical miles (about 175 kilometers) southeast of Aden, Yemen" around 16:30 hours (Spanish peninsular time).
"The captain of an oil tanker reported that he had heard a strong explosion very close to the vessel. The entire crew is safe and has been located. No environmental impact has been reported," added the UKMTO, which specified that authorities continue to investigate what happened.