ADEN, Yemen, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- The Yemeni government on Monday strongly condemned acts of maritime piracy carried out by Houthi militia in the country's territorial waters.
The state-run Saba news agency reported that the government expressed its "strong disapproval of the recent acts of maritime piracy conducted by the Houthi militia with support from the Iranian regime."
It noted that the most recent incident was the hijacking of the Liberian-flagged oil tanker, Central Park, near the coast of Aden, which took place on Sunday.
The hijacking incident has been labeled by the government as "an extension of the Houthis' ongoing sabotage efforts," which it said pose a significant threat to international navigation.
The government warned of the "danger of the Houthi militia and its agenda linked to Iranian interests in the region," adding that "these actions do not serve the Palestinian issue."
Earlier in the day, Khaled Al-Qumali, head of the Coast Guard Forces, told Xinhua that the U.S. Navy intervened, leading to the release of the Central Park and the capture of the pirates responsible for the hijacking.
The U.S. destroyer USS Mason, part of the Dwight D Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group, responded to a distress call from the tanker and demanded the release of the ship, after which two ballistic missiles were launched from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen early Monday morning and fell into the Gulf of Aden, about 10 nautical miles from the ships, the U.S. military reported.
The incident followed another high-profile seizure in the region on Nov. 19, when the Houthi group claimed to have captured an "Israeli cargo ship" in the Red Sea.
The Houthi group linked its action to the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip, which started on Oct. 7.
Since the Yemeni civil war erupted in late 2014, the Houthi militia has taken control of much of Yemen's north, including the strategic Red Sea port city of Hodeidah. ■
