Pentagon:The militants who seized the "Central Park" oil tanker are Somalis and not Houthis

Pentagon:

The militants who seized the "Central Park"

oil tanker are Somalis and not Houthis

The Pentagon reported that a group of five militants

who seized another merchant vessel near

Yemen were likely Somalis rather than Houthis.

It was noted that the militants had been arrested by United States forces

after fleeing the "Central Park" oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden.

While ballistic missiles

were fired shortly after Houthi-held territory in Yemen

the Pentagon

did not rule out that

the Houthis were somehow linked to the Somali offensive.

This comes about a week after the Houthis in Yemen announced that

they had detained an Israeli businessman's vessel in the Red Sea.

The seizure of

the vessel was part of a threat by Ansar Allah (Al-Houthi)

to target Israeli vessels in a new escalation of

their attacks against Israel in response to its war against Gaza, and last week the Houthis warned that Israeli vessels would be a legitimate target for them.

The agency added:

No one immediately claimed responsibility

but it comes as at least two other naval attacks carried out

by the Ansar Allah (Houthi)

group in recent days have been linked to the Israeli war on Gaza.

The US official told AFP: 

"There are indications that an unknown number of unidentified militants took control of the M-tanker at Central Park in the Gulf of Aden on November 26,"

 noting that 

"American and coalition forces are in the vicinity of

the area and we are closely monitoring the situation"

after a series of similar incidents on the shipping route itself.

Ambry Maritime Security reported earlier on Sunday that

the tanker owned by a U.K.-based company linked to

Israel had been intercepted, stating that 

the U.S. Navy is following the situation.

It noted that the "Houthis"

had previously threatened to attack the vessel if it did not divert towards

the port of Hodeidah, and the company added that

communications from an American Alliance warship warning

Central Park against ignoring the messages were intercepted.

According to the company

the boarding of people aboard the tanker took place offshore from

the Yemeni port city of Aden, where another vessel in the area reported that

"eight people in uniform were approaching on two boats."

A commercial vessel belonging to an Israeli businessman

was attacked in the Indian Ocean Friday by a suspected Iranian

made drone :

according to a U.S. military official Saturday.