Attempted Piracy Attack Targets British Vessel Off Yemen’s Coast

ADEN, May 18 (NNN-SABA) – Yemen’s pro-government coast guard forces, confirmed on Sunday that, a British vessel came under an attempted piracy attack in the Gulf of Aden.

Captain Nasser Awlaki, with the Yemeni Coast Guard forces, confirmed that, “a British vessel was subjected to an attempt of piracy attack (80 miles) from the nearest land point, off the country’s southern coast.”

He said, “The ship was subjected to an attempted piracy attack in the Gulf of Aden, offshore of Yemen’s port of Mukalla, east of the country.”

According to Awlaki, “the incident occurred in an area far from the jurisdiction of the Yemeni Coast Guard.”

Earlier, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said, a vessel came under attack in the Gulf of Aden, at 12:30 GMT. The organisation advised extreme caution to any vessels transiting the area.

Yemen has been plagued by a civil war since the late 2014, after Houthi rebels forced the internationally-recognised government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi into exile.