Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi terrorists have stated that they had no involvement in a supposed attack against a foreign commercial vessel in the Gulf of Aden on Saturday, October 18.
The terror group's affiliate news agency Saba reported that the attack that targeted the Cameroon-registered LPG tanker Falcon is being investigated by the Yemeni Government.
Saba quoted a Yemen Coast Guard official as saying that all 26 of the tanker's crew have been safely evacuated.
However, Operation Aspides, the EU-led mission tasked with protecting commercial vessels from terror attacks, said that only 24 of the crew have been rescued while the remaining two have gone missing.
Operation Aspides said that Falcon was some 113 nautical miles off the Yemeni port city of Aden and en route to Djibouti when she suffered an onboard explosion and a subsequent fire.
Aspides officials confirmed that the 24 rescued sailors have been handed over to the Djiboutian Coast Guard while the tanker is headed for the Port of Djibouti with the Hellenic Navy frigate HS Spetsai providing escort.
The rescued sailors included one Ukrainian and 23 Indian nationals, EU naval officials said.
