Passengers rescued from Emirati aid ship targeted by Yemen rebel fighters

The vessel was also being used to evacuate wounded and injured civilians.

Civilian passengers were rescued from an Emirati aid ship carrying medical and relief supplies to Yemen after it was targeted by Houthi militias.

A rescue operation was launched in the early hours of Saturday after a civilian vessel owned by the UAE’s National Marine Dredging Company was intercepted in the Bab Al Mandab Strait during a journey to deliver emergency supplies to Aden.

The Bab Al Mandeb Strait connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, between Yemen on the Arabian Peninsula, and Djibouti and Eritrea in the Horn of Africa.

The vessel was also being used to move wounded and injured civilians for medical treatment outside of the country.

The attack was described as a “dangerous indication” in a statement released by the command of the Coalition Forces Supporting Legitimacy in Yemen.

“This comes as a serious indicator to confirm the orientation of these militias to carry out terrorist operations targeting the international navigation and relief ships in Bab Al Mandab Strait,” said a coalition statement published by Wam, the state news agency.

“Coalition air and naval forces had started chasing and targeting of boats, which carried out the attack.”

The UAE military is involved in the Saudi-led Arab coalition’s Operation Restoring Hope, to back the legitimate government in Yemen. The UAE is supporting its role with humanitarian assistance for Yemenis caught in the conflict.