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Islamabad: A liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) tanker with 27 crew members, including 24 Pakistanis, was attacked by an Israeli drone and detained by Houthis earlier this month, Pakistan's interior minister said on Saturday.
The tanker and its crew were later released, minister Mohsin Naqvi said in a statement on X. The tanker was targeted on September 17 while it was docked at the Ras Issa port in Yemen, Naqvi said. He said that an LPG tank had exploded following the attack, but the crew managed to extinguish the fire.
“The vessel was subsequently stopped by Houthi boats and the crew were held hostage aboard the ship,” he said, adding that the tanker and its crew “have now been released by the Houthis and are out of Yemeni waters”.
According to Naqvi, the crew also included two Sri Lankans and a Nepali citizen, while the vessel’s captain was Pakistani.
Israel has repeatedly attacked the Houthis during the Gaza conflict, as the Iran-backed rebels launch missiles and drones at Israel to show solidarity with the Palestinians.