Saudi Arabia says Yemeni rebel boat rams frigate in Red Sea

SANAA, Yemen (AP) — Saudi Arabia said Monday that a "suicide gunboat" belonging to Yemen's Iranian-backed Shiite rebels rammed one of its frigates in the Red Sea, killing two crew members and injuring three.

The official Saudi Press Agency said the gunboat was one of three that attacked the frigate which was patrolling off the Yemeni port of Hodeida, but gave few details.

The Yemeni rebels, also known as the Houthis, gave a different version, claiming that the frigate was hit by a rocket they fired, starting a fire on board the ship.

A video clip broadcast by the Houthis' al-Masirah television showed a warship being hit and a fire on board starting as a man not shown in the video shouted the rebels' trademark chant of "Allahu akbar (God is greatest), death to America, death to Israel, a curse on the Jews and victory for Islam."

The authenticity of the video could not be independently confirmed.

The Saudi Press Agency report said a fire was quickly put out and the frigate continued its mission while warplanes and warships from a Saudi-led coalition pursued the Houthis' gunboats.

The coalition has since March 2015 been fighting the Houthi rebels and forces loyal to a former Yemeni president, waging an extensive air campaign aimed at restoring the internationally recognized government of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.

Yemen's civil war began the previous year, when the rebels captured Sanaa, Yemen's capital, and blitzed across much of the country.

They have since 2015 been dislodged from most of the south of Yemen, but they remain in control of much of the north.

Monday's attack on the Saudi warship was the second since October to target a coalition vessel.

The rebels said then that they had hit a vessel operated by the United Arab Emirates. The UAE military acknowledged only that a boat under its command was involved in an "incident" in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea and said there were no casualties.