Arab coalition destroys Houthi explosive-laden boat south of the Red Sea

Fishermen sail near Zuqar Island off the coast of Yemen's war-ravaged Red Sea port city of Hodeida on May 3, 2021. (AFP)
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  • The coalition also destroyed an explosive-ladened boat in the Red Sea

RIYADH: The Arab coalition fighting the Houthi militias in Yemen has destroyed an explosive-laden boat used by the Iran-aligned group in the south of the Red Sea on Wednesday.

The explosive-laden boat was launched from Yemen's Hodeidah, it added.

The coalition said the Houthis’ threat to freedom of navigation at sea endangers regional and international security.

The bloc had earlier destroyed a drone which took off from Sanaa international airport and was downed in the governorate of Amran in Yemen. 

The coalition also hit Houthi units who, they said, were moving weapons. 

The drone was assembled and rigged by the Houthi air defense unit at the airport, the coalition said.

Saudi Arabia’s air defenses often destroy the militia’s drones, which are launched from northern Yemen.

On Tuesday, the coalition hit Iranian Revolutionary Guard experts in Yemen’s capital.

The operation complied with international humanitarian law and its customary rules, the coalition said.

The Arab coalition has struck a number of sites in the capital in the past few weeks in an effort to deteriorate the capabilities of the Iran-backed Houthi militia.

Houthi attempts to target civilians has been labeled as war crimes by the Kingdom.

The Arab coalition has been supporting the internationally recognized Yemeni government regain full control of the country after the Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa, in 2014.

The war, which has now lasted for seven years, has cost thousands of Yemenis their lives and has forced many more to depend on humanitarian assistance.