Israel says Houthis have hijacked India-bound vessel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday condemned the hijacking of an international vessel by Iran-backed Houthis in the Red Sea and called it a 'very serious incident on the global scale'.

Taking to X, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office said, 'Israel strongly condemns the Iranian attack against an international vessel. The ship, which is owned by a British company and is operated by a Japanese firm, was hijacked with Iran's guidance by the Yemenite Houthi militia.'

It also shared, 'Onboard the vessel are 25 crew members of various nationalities including Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Filipino and Mexican. No Israelis are onboard.'

Condemning the hijack, it said, 'This is another act of Iranian terrorism and constitutes a leap forward in Iran's aggression against the citizens of the free world, with international consequences regarding the security of the global shipping lanes.'

Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said that the ship was sailing from Turkey to India with an international civilian crew, without any Israelis aboard and added, "This is not an Israeli ship," The Times of Israel reported.