JNS
The Yemen-based terror group said that it hijacked the “Galaxy Leader” because of its Israeli connection.
Houthi rebels said on Wednesday that they released the crew of the ship Galaxy Leader, a vehicle carrier, seized in November 2023.
The Bahaman-flagged ship is registered by a British company partially owned by Israeli tycoon Abraham Ungar.
The Yemen-based terror group said that it hijacked the ship because of its Israeli connection, the Associated Press reported.
The group seized the vessel at the start of its attacks on shipping in the Red Sea corridor in identification with the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
The Houthis have since targeted more than 100 commercial ships.
While the terror group claimed that it only targeted vessels linked to Israel, the United States or the United Kingdom, many of the ships attacked had "little or no connection, including some bound for Iran," the news outlet said.
The rebels said they released the sailors after mediation by the Gulf state Oman. A separate request by Hamas urged the release of the 25-person crew, which included sailors from the Philippines, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine and Mexico, AP reported.
“This step comes in support of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza,” the Houthis said in a statement.
On Jan. 19, the terror group signaled that it will limit its maritime attacks in the Red Sea to only Israel-linked vessels until the last phase of the ceasefire agreement is carried out, AP reported on Sunday.
In addition to its attacks on maritime shipping—estimated to have cost shipping companies hundreds of millions of dollars each month—the Houthis also launched multiple missile and drone strikes on Israel.
The Israel Defense Forces intercepted two ballistic missiles fired at the center and south of the country from Yemen as recently as Jan. 18. In response, Israeli and U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces have launched counterstrikes against Yemen.
The rate of Houthi attacks has slowed in recent weeks, AP reported, suggesting that it may be due to counterattacks by the West. "The U.S. and its partners alone have struck the Houthis over 260 times, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies," the news outlet said.
