Tehran, Nov 20 (EFE).- Iran on Monday rejected accusations about its involvement in the hijacking of a cargo ship in the Red Sea by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, allied with Tehran.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Naser Kanani said at a press conference in Tehran that these accusations, made by Israel, were only to divert attention from the difficult situation the “Zionist regime” found itself in.
Iran’s chief diplomat remarked that Israel could not accept that it had suffered a setback at the hands of a resistance group in the region, who were acting independently and not with Tehran’s blessings.
The Houthis announced Sunday having captured the vessel, which they claimed belonged to Israel, and taking it to an unspecified port controlled by the insurgents .
The vehicle carrier Galaxy Leader, owned by a British company and operated by the Japanese shipping firm Nippon Yusen, had 25 sailors on board of Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Filipino, Mexican and Romanian origin.
Following the Houthis’ announcement, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned what it considered to be an Iranian attack on an international ship, which was heading for India from Turkey.
For its part, the Japanese government condemned Monday the hijacking of the cargo ship operated by a Japanese company and called for the release of the 25 sailors taken hostage.
Iran leads the so-called Axis of Resistance, an informal alliance formed by militant organizations such as Hezbollah, Houthi rebels, the Islamist movement Hamas and Islamic Jihad, as well as a myriad of groups in Iraq and Syria.
Tehran celebrated Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7 that killed 1,200 people and has since warned repeatedly that its allies could open other fronts if they do not stop the bombings of Gaza, which have killed more than 13,000 Palestinians. EFE
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