By: Reuters

Reuters footage from Jeddah's Islamic Port on Thursday (July 23) showed shipping containers and port crates overlooking the Red Sea.

Earlier on Thursday, Yemen's Houthis announced they had carried out a military operation targeting two Saudi oil tankers that they said had violated the naval blockade imposed by the Iran-aligned group on Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea.

The Saudi Arabian news agency SPA later cited an official source as saying the Saudi vessel Encelia was on fire after an attack in the Red Sea, though the crew was safe. SPA did not say who had targeted the vessel.

Authorities have secured the vessel and its crew and taken measures to protect the marine environment, describing the attack as a violation of international law, SPA reported, citing the source.

In the same statement announcing their attack on the two tankers, the Houthis also said they had forced around 10 ships to retreat and return. Reuters could not immediately verify this account.

Five tankers changed course in the Red Sea on Wednesday (July 22), with two signaling the Suez Canal as their new destination after the Houthis warned ships to avoid Saudi ports, ship-tracking data showed.