ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A Saudi transport official confirmed the targeting of a Saudi-owned vessel as it transited the Red Sea, Riyadh’s state-run media reported Thursday, censuring the assault as a violation of international law.
The confirmation came shortly after the Iran-backed Ansarullah movement in Yemen, better known as the Houthis, claimed to have struck "two Saudi oil tankers" as part of their declared naval blockade on Saudi shipping in the Red Sea, announced on Monday.
"An official source at the General Authority of Transport stated that the Saudi-owned vessel Encelia was targeted while sailing in the Red Sea, sparking a fire at the bow," the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
The state-run agency cited the source as confirming the safety of all crew members, noting that "relevant authorities have taken all necessary measures to secure the vessel and its crew, as well as to protect the marine environment."
The official added that "such attacks constitute a violation of international laws and norms that guarantee the safety of commercial vessels and their crews," SPA said.
For its part, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported receiving notice of an incident on Wednesday some 70 nautical miles off the coastal town of al-Shuqaiq, in Saudi Arabia's southwestern Jizan province, facing the Red Sea.
"The master of a tanker reports being struck by an unknown projectile which has caused a fire onboard that the crew are currently fighting," the British navy monitor said, adding that "authorities are investigating" and that "vessels are advised to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity."
The reports came shortly after Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said in a statement posted on X that the Iran-backed group had "carried out a qualitative military operation targeting two Saudi oil tankers," identifying them as the Encelia and the Layla, after they had purportedly "violated the blockade" imposed by the Houthis on Saudi shipping in the Red Sea.
Saree further claimed the Houthis had "forced approximately ten ships [transiting the Red Sea] to retreat and return," and warned that any Saudi military action would be "met with large-scale operations deep within its territory, and the consequences will be dire for it."
The Houthis on Monday cited what he said was an "unjust and oppressive siege" by Riyadh "on our ports and airports by land, sea, and air" for 12 years since the onset of the Yemen war, as the reason behind the embargo.
Riyadh on the same day firmly rejected the Houthi claims of a blockade on Yemen, as the Saudi-led coalition aligned with Yemen's internationally recognized government (IRG) also warned that the Houthi measures in the Red Sea amount to 'maritime piracy' and will be met with “decisive force.”
As the Houthis control Yemen's western coastline, the blockade primarily targets the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which connects the Gulf of Aden to the Red Sea.
The move is specifically geared toward blocking Saudi Arabia's western maritime trade route, used to transfer crude via the East-West Pipeline across the kingdom to its major Red Sea export terminal at Yanbu.
The measures come as Riyadh's alternative routes through the Gulf are also facing ongoing disruptions near the Strait of Hormuz, due to maritime restrictions imposed by the Houthis' Iranian allies - the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday warned the Houthis that if they move forward with imposing a naval blockade in the Red Sea, his country will "have to take care of business.”
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