Egypt condemned on Thursday an attack on two Saudi oil tankers carried out by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. Houthis attacked the large crude carriers (VLCCs) in the Red Sea on Wednesday morning, with one VLCC sustaining minimal damage. "The attack constitutes a flagrant violation of international laws and norms, which stipulates freedom of navigation on international waterways, aside from having a negative impact on freedom of movement for international trade," reads a statement issued by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry. The statement reiterated Egypt's call for the international community to "work on the restoration of Yemeni legitimacy based on the international guidelines set out in UN Security Council Resolution 2216 (2015), the Gulf initiative, and the outcomes of Yemen's national dialogue." The statement also urged for resistance against all terror acts that would destabilize the region. On Thursday, top oil exporter Saudi Arabia said it is "temporarily halting" all oil shipments through the strategic Red Sea shipping lane of Bab El-Mandeb following the attack. The Bab al-Mandeb strait is where the Red Sea meets the Gulf of Aden in the Arabian Sea. Most ships that pass through Bab Al-Mandeb are either going to or coming from Egypt's Suez Canal, one of the country's main sources of income and foreign currency flow.
