Freed Houthi prisoners return to Yemen

Over 100 Houthi rebel prisoners released by the Saudi-led coalition returned to Yemen on Thursday, a move toward a long-anticipated prisoner swap between the warring parties.

Welcoming 128 freed Yemenis at the airport in the capital, Sanaa, Houthi leader Muhammad al-Bukhaiti hailed their arrival as “a first practical step by the Saudis that builds trust.” Dozens more released in Saudi Arabia earlier this week are expected to follow.

Relatives and Houthi officials gathered around the procession of prisoners, kissing their hands.

Members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) arrive at Sanaa Airport to receive Houthi prisoners after being released by the Saudi-led coalition, Yemen, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2019. The International Committee of the Red Cross says over a hundred rebel prisoners released by the Saudi-led coalition have returned to Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, a step toward a long-anticipated prisoner swap between the warring parties. (AP PhotoHani Mohammed)

Their return was a sign the Saudi coalition and Iran-backed Houthis were advancing a U.N.-brokered deal aimed at ending the war in the Arab world’s poorest country.

“There’s a positive environment now in Sanaa,” Erika Trovar, spokeswoman for the International Committee of the Red Cross, which supervised the captives’ arrival, told The Associated Press. “People in the streets are more optimistic about the future ... and about the return of more detainees to their families.”

Yemeni government officials had described the release as a show of good faith aimed at encouraging Houthis to engage in peace talks.

Yemeni prisoners gather during their arrival after being released by the Saudi-led coalition in the airport of Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2019. The International Committee of the Red Cross says over a hundred rebel prisoners released by the Saudi-led coalition have returned to Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, a step toward a long-anticipated prisoner swap between the warring parties. (AP PhotoHani Mohammed)

In September, Houthis freed over 200 captives who had been held since the rebels seized Sanaa, along with much of northern Yemen, in 2014.

The Saudi-led coalition launched its campaign in 2015 to drive out the Houthis and restore the internationally recognized government of President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi, now exiled in Saudi Arabia. The grinding war has killed over 100,000 people, many of them civilians, and created a humanitarian catastrophe.

A much larger prisoner swap has been in the making since warring sides agreed to a U.N.-negotiated deal in Sweden last December.

Yemeni prisoners gather during their arrival after being released by the Saudi-led coalition in the airport of Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2019. The International Committee of the Red Cross says over a hundred rebel prisoners released by the Saudi-led coalition have returned to Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, a step toward a long-anticipated prisoner swap between the warring parties. (AP PhotoHani Mohammed)

“This move (Thursday) by the Saudis is lacking,” Houthi official Abdul-Qader el-Murtaza said in a statement. “We hope that a full exchange deal will be completed by both parties.”

The U.N.-mediated agreement, which has yet to be fully implemented, also involves a cease-fire in the crucial port city of Hodeida, a main conduit for humanitarian aid and imports into Houthi territory.

In recent months, Saudi Arabia started backchannel negotiations with the Houthis in Oman, after the rebels claimed an attack on Saudi oil infrastructure that threatened global oil supplies. The United States blamed the attack on Iran, which denied involvement.

Yemeni prisoners gather during their arrival after being released by the Saudi-led coalition in the airport of Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2019. The International Committee of the Red Cross says over a hundred rebel prisoners released by the Saudi-led coalition have returned to Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, a step toward a long-anticipated prisoner swap between the warring parties. (AP PhotoHani Mohammed)

In the absence of a framework peace plan, current talks focus on interim goals, such as reopening the international airport in Sanaa, which was shut down by the coalition in 2016.

Yemeni prisoners are greeted by Houthi officers during their arrival after being released by the Saudi-led coalition in the airport of Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2019. The International Committee of the Red Cross says over a hundred rebel prisoners released by the Saudi-led coalition have returned to Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, a step toward a long-anticipated prisoner swap between the warring parties. (AP PhotoHani Mohammed)

A Yemeni prisoner is greeted by his relative after being released by the Saudi-led coalition, in the airport of Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2019. The International Committee of the Red Cross says over a hundred rebel prisoners released by the Saudi-led coalition have returned to Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, a step toward a long-anticipated prisoner swap between the warring parties. (AP PhotoHani Mohammed)

Yemeni prisoners gather during their arrival after being released by the Saudi-led coalition in the airport of Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2019. The International Committee of the Red Cross says over a hundred rebel prisoners released by the Saudi-led coalition have returned to Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, a step toward a long-anticipated prisoner swap between the warring parties. (AP PhotoHani Mohammed)

A Yemeni prisoner, center, gestures during his arrival with his fellows after being released by the Saudi-led coalition in the airport of Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2019. The International Committee of the Red Cross says over a hundred rebel prisoners released by the Saudi-led coalition have returned to Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, a step toward a long-anticipated prisoner swap between the warring parties. (AP PhotoHani Mohammed)

Yemeni prisoners gather during their arrival after being released by the Saudi-led coalition in the airport of Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2019. The International Committee of the Red Cross says over a hundred rebel prisoners released by the Saudi-led coalition have returned to Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, a step toward a long-anticipated prisoner swap between the warring parties. (AP PhotoHani Mohammed)

A Yemeni prisoner, center, gestures during his arrival with his fellows after being released by the Saudi-led coalition in the airport of Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2019. The International Committee of the Red Cross says over a hundred rebel prisoners released by the Saudi-led coalition have returned to Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, a step toward a long-anticipated prisoner swap between the warring parties. (AP PhotoHani Mohammed)

JERUSALEM (AP) — A ship traveling in the Gulf of Aden came under attack Thursday, officials said, the latest assault carried out by Yemen's Houthi rebels over Israel's ongoing war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The attack comes after the U.S. military said early Thursday an allied warship shot down a Houthi missile targeting a vessel the day before near the same area. The Houthis claimed that Wednesday assault, which comes after a period of relatively few rebel attacks on shipping in the region over Israel’s ongoing war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

In Thursday's attack, a ship was targeted just over 25 kilometers (15 miles) southwest of Aden, the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said.

The captain “reports a loud bang heard and a splash and smoke seen coming from the sea,” the UKMTO said. “Vessel and all crew are safe.”

The attack was also reported by the private security firm Ambrey.

Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree claimed the attack late Thursday, identifying the ship the rebels tried to target as the MSC Darwin.

European Union forces separately shot down a drone launched from Houthi territory on Thursday, Gen. Robert Brieger said. Separately on Wednesday, the British warship HMS Diamond began the first in the Royal Navy to shoot down a missile since 1991 when it destroyed a Houthi missile targeting merchant ships.

The Houthis have launched more than 50 attacks on shipping, seized one vessel and sank another since November, according to the U.S. Maritime Administration.

Houthi attacks have dropped in recent weeks as the rebels have been targeted by a U.S.-led airstrike campaign in Yemen and shipping through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden has declined because of the threat. American officials have speculated that the rebels may be running out of weapons as a result of the U.S.-led campaign against them and firing off drones and missiles steadily in the last months.

However, Wednesday's attack was the first one by rebels in some time. An explosion struck some 130 kilometers (80 miles) southeast of Djibouti in the Gulf of Aden, the UKMTO said.

Early Thursday, the U.S. military’s Central Command said the explosion came from a coalition warship shooting down the missile likely targeting the MV Yorktown, a U.S.-flagged, owned and operated vessel with 18 U.S. and four Greek crew members.

“There were no injuries or damage reported by U.S., coalition or commercial ships,” Central Command said.

Saree claimed that attack but insisted without evidence that the missile hit the Yorktown. Saree also claimed the Houthis targeted another ship in the Indian Ocean, without providing proof. The Houthis have made repeated claims that turned out to not be true during their yearslong war in Yemen.

The Houthis have said they will continue their attacks until Israel ends its war in Gaza, which has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians there. The war began after Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and taking some 250 others hostage.

Most of the ships targeted by the Houthis have had little or no direct connection to Israel, the U.S. or other nations involved in the war. The rebels have also fired missiles toward Israel, though they have largely fallen short or been intercepted.

In this photo provided by the Ministry of Defence (MoD), a Sea Viper missile is launched from HMS Diamond to shoot down a missile fired by the Iranian-backed Houthis from Yemen, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. Yemen’s Houthi rebels fired a large barrage of drones and missiles targeting shipping in the Red Sea Wednesday. (LPhot Chris Sellars/MoD Crown copyright via AP)

In this photo provided by the Ministry of Defence (MoD), members of the HMS Diamond's Bridge team shoot down a missile fired by the Iranian-backed Houthis from Yemen, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. Yemen’s Houthi rebels fired a large barrage of drones and missiles targeting shipping in the Red Sea Wednesday. (LPhot Chris Sellars/MoD Crown via AP)