IDF confirms Houthis hijacked ship in Red Sea, says it is not an Israeli vessel

The Israel Defense Forces says the hijacking of a shipping vessel in the Red Sea by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen is a “very serious incident on the global scale.”

It says the ship was sailing from Turkey to India with an international civilian crew, without any Israelis aboard.

“This is not an Israeli ship,” the IDF adds.

The military directly blames the Houthis for the hijacking.

#SONDAKİKA
El Arabiya: "Yemen'deki Husiler, Kızıldeniz'de 22 İsrailli mürettebatın bulunduğu bir İsrail gemisini ele geçirdi."

▪️İsrailli hesaplar, ele geçirilen geminin Galaxy Leader isimli gemi olduğunu aktarıyor. pic.twitter.com/8eKOSMrbFN

— EHA MEDYA (@eha_medya) November 19, 2023

There are no Israelis among the crew aboard the Galaxy Leader ship. Arabic-language media outlets say there are 52 crew members aboard the vessel.

The Bahaman-flagged vessel is registered under a British company, which is partially owned by Israeli tycoon Abraham Ungar, who goes by Rami. The vessel was leased out to a Japanese company at the time of the hijacking.

The Iran-backed Houthis have vowed to target Israeli-linked vessels in the Red Sea.