Saudi coalition strikes Houthi targets following Red Sea tanker attack

A Saudi-led military coalition launched retaliatory airstrikes against Houthi targets in Hodeidah, Yemen, following an attack on the Saudi-flagged tanker NCC Masa in the Red Sea. While the vessel sustained minor hull damage, its crew safely navigated it to its destination port.

Following the incident, the European Union's naval mission Aspides escalated its security threat assessment from medium to high for the Bab al-Mandab strait and the southern Red Sea.

Concurrently, maritime security in neighboring waters remains precarious. Somali pirates in Puntland continue to hold a merchant vessel seized in the Gulf of Aden, which reportedly has eight German nationals aboard. In light of the escalating regional volatility, Germany’s military announced it is redeploying two naval vessels from East Africa back to the eastern Mediterranean.

Sources: ORF, Tagesschau