DOHA, August 22. /TASS/. The Houthis from Yemen's rebel Ansar Allah movement have attacked at least 182 vessels considered to be linked to Israel since last November, the movement's leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi said in a speech broadcast by the Al Masirah TV channel.

"This week we carried out 21 operations using ballistic and cruise missiles, drones and boats," the leader said. "The number of ships attacked for being related to Israel and violating the embargo against it reached 182," he added.

Following the escalation of the conflict in the Gaza Strip, Ansar Allah warned that it would bombard Israeli territory and prevent associated ships from sailing through the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait as long as the operation in the Palestinian enclave continued. Since last November, the Houthis have been attacking civilian ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. On March 14 of this year, al-Houthi announced that his supporters intended to attack commercial ships that would be traveling through the Indian Ocean and around the Cape of Good Hope in southern Africa. The Houthis later announced a "fourth stage of escalation." They warned they would attack ships bound for Israeli ports throughout their reach, including the Mediterranean Sea.

On August 21, Reuters reported that the Greek-flagged Sounion oil tanker was incapacitated in an attack off the Yemeni coast. According to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), the incident occurred 77 nautical miles (142 km) west of the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah. The vessel was approached by two boats carrying about 15 armed men. A gunfight ensued between them and the vessel's crew, after which the boats withdrew to a distance of about two miles. The tanker was then hit by three unidentified shells, essentially disabling the ship. On August 22, Reuters quoted an EU Aspides military mission spokesman as saying that the entire crew of the Sounion had been rescued. According to Greek media, the team included 23 Filipinos and two Russians.