CAIRO: Egypt has strongly condemned the Houthi militia’s hijacking of a cargo ship carrying the UAE flag, and called for its immediate release. “Such terrorist operations pose a real threat to the freedom and safety of navigation in the Red Sea,” Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement. “These acts constitute a flagrant violation of the rules of international law.” On Sunday, the Saudi-led coalition supporting Yemen’s internationally recognized government announced that the cargo ship Rawabi had been hijacked while on a naval mission from the Yemeni island of Socotra to the Saudi port city of Jizan. The ship was carrying equipment for operating a Saudi field hospital on the island, including ambulances, medical and communications equipment, tents and a kitchen. The coalition said the hijacking by the Houthi militia in Yemen represents a real threat to freedom of maritime navigation in the Bab Al-Mandab Strait and the southern Red Sea, as well as to global trade.