SANAA, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's Houthi group said Wednesday that it had targeted eight Saudi oil tankers and turned back 48 others over the past month, outlining the scale of its maritime campaign against Saudi-linked shipping in and around the Red Sea.
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said in a statement posted on social media platform X that the operations had been carried out since the group announced a ban on Saudi-linked maritime traffic on July 20.
The figures could not be independently verified. Saudi authorities did not immediately comment on the latest Houthi claims.
Beyond the maritime campaign, Sarea said Houthi forces had conducted nine operations against targets in Saudi Arabia, including oil-related targets in the kingdom's Eastern Province.
Sarea also claimed that 14 operations had targeted "Saudi military reinforcements" and equipment in several areas of Yemen, including Hadramout, Marib and Mocha, as well as vessels transporting military supplies.
Sarea warned Riyadh against expanding the confrontation, saying "any comprehensive escalation will be met with comprehensive escalation."
Yemen has been mired in conflict since late 2014, when the Houthis seized much of northern Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene the following year in support of the internationally recognized Yemeni government.
A UN-brokered truce that took effect in April 2022 expired six months later without a formal extension, but a fragile de facto ceasefire has largely held until the recent escalation. ■
