The US, UN and Arab League have condemned the Al Houthi attack on the UAE ship in a Red Sea shipping lane, which was struck by a missile on Saturday.
United States
The US Navy sent three warships to patrol near Yemen’s southern coast, two US defence officials told Fox News on Monday. A day earlier, the US condemned the attack, which left the vessel heavily damaged.
“The US remains committed to upholding freedom of navigation through Bab Al Mandeb,” said State Department spokesman John Kirby, in reference to the strategic shipping strait where the attack took place.
“We call on the Al Houthi-Saleh groups to immediately cease attacks against all vessels.”
Saleh is a reference to Ali Abdullah Saleh, the former Yemeni president who is attempting to seize power through an alliance with the Iran-backed group.
The statement added: “These provocative actions risk exacerbating the current conflict and narrow the prospects for a peaceful settlement.”
UN Security Council
Condemning the attack, the UN Security Council on Tuesday called for such attacks “to cease immediately”.
“The members of the Security Council take threats to shipping around Bab Al Mandeb, a strategically important shipping passage, extremely seriously,” the 15-nation UN body said in a statement. It urged that necessary steps to be taken to de-escalate the situation.
“The members of the Security Council reiterated their support to the special envoy to pursue his efforts to find a political solution to the conflict in Yemen,” the statement said, referring to Esmail Ould Shaikh Ahmad, UN Special Envoy for Yemen.
Arab League
Ahmad Abul Gait, Secretary-General of the 22-member Arab League, also described the attack as “unacceptable and violating international laws”.
Gulf Cooperation Council
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) said that it considered the attack an act of terrorism that jeopardised international use of the shipping strait, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The attack runs contrary to international navigation laws and to regional and international efforts being made to send relief aid to Yemen, said Abdul Latif Bin Rashid Al Zayani, GCC Secretary-General.
Saudi Arabia’s cabinet echoed the comments.
