Sana'a [Yemen], August 13 : Yemen's Houthis on Wednesday (local time) announced new military operations targeting Saudi assets, including a direct strike on a military transport vessel in the Red Sea and coordinated strikes on key Saudi-backed positions inland, according to Press TV.
Houthis announced strikes on a Saudi ship and military sites.
The military spokesperson of the Houthis said in a statement that the rebel group "successfully targeted Saudi enemy troop concentrations, weapons depots, and command centres in the Mocha area and the Tadawin camp in Marib Governorate with a large number of ballistic missiles and drones. The strikes were precise and resulted in dozens of casualties, including Saudis".
It further added that the "group will continue their operations targeting all Saudi troop concentrations through which they seek to escalate tensions and seize control of our beloved country".
The Yemeni Houthis warned those they accuse of being misled to abandon collaboration with their adversaries and stop what they described as acts of treason before it is too late.
Meanwhile, Yemen's internationally recognised Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) chairman Rashad al-Alimi vowed that the government would respond to Houthi actions and called on the group to end the fighting and join the country's political process, Al Jazeera reported.
Al Jazeera reported, while citing Yemen's SABA news agency, that al-Alimi said during a meeting with representatives of prominent media outlets that "no action by the Houthi militias will go unanswered or unchecked". Rashad al-Alimi also said there was still an opportunity for the Houthis "to lay down their arms, engage in political life, and compete through the ballot box on an equal footing with all other Yemenis".
The attack comes days after at least six people were killed in a "double-tap" missile strike on a commercial vessel in the Red Sea's Bab al-Mandeb Strait. The Yemeni government blamed Iran-backed Houthi rebels for the attack, CNN reported.
According to the Ministry of Transport, the Houthis fired three ballistic missiles at the Tihamah, a small cargo ship transporting food.
The strikes sparked a fire that killed four crew members -- three Pakistanis and one Indonesian -- and injured four other crew members and a rescue worker, the ministry said, as reported by CNN.
The ministry said the Houthis struck the vessel a second time after a search and rescue operation had begun, describing it as an attempt to "endanger the lives of all onboard, including the rescue teams".
The Yemeni Coast Guard later confirmed that two of those killed were rescue workers.
There was initially confusion over the ownership of the vessel. Yemeni officials and marine intelligence group Marisks had reported that a Saudi-owned vessel was targeted. However, data from MarineTraffic showed that the Tihamah was sailing under the Tanzanian flag and was owned by companies registered in Egypt and Yemen.
The latest development also follows a Houthi missile and drone barrage targeting the Red Sea port of Al-Mokha in southwestern Yemen on August 9. The port is located in an area controlled by Yemen's internationally recognised government, Al Jazeera reported, citing Yemen Today TV and state-run Saba TV.
Following the attack, Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group's forces had carried out a "large-scale and precise" operation against the strategic maritime facility.
The latest strikes come amid continued tensions in and around the Red Sea, with attacks on commercial and military vessels raising concerns over maritime security in the strategic waterway.