Saudi-led coalition intercepts and destroys an explosives-laden Houthi boat‏

The Saudi-led Arab coalition said it intercepted and destroyed an explosives-laden boat launched from Yemen by the Iran-backed Houthi militias on Thursday.

According to a statement issued by the coalition spokesman Colonel Turki al-Malki "The coalition's naval forces detected an attempt by the terrorist Houthi militia backed by Iran to carry out an imminent act of aggression and terrorism south of the Red Sea using an unmanned, rigged boat launched from Hodeidah province" .

Malki did not specify the intended target.

There was no immediate confirmation by the Houthi movement, which had claimed responsibility for the Sept. 14 attacks on Saudi oil facilities. Riyadh has rejected the claim and said those strikes did not come from Yemen.

" Thursday's foiled attack represented a threat to regional and international security and the safety of maritime routes and international trade," Malki said

The incident comes as the Saudi Arabia consider responses to Saturday's assault on Saudi oil facilities, which Riyadh blame on Iran. Tehran denies any involvement.

The Saudi-led Arab coalition intervened in Yemen in March 2015 against the Houthis after they ousted the internationally recognized government in Sanaa in late 2014.

The escalating tension could hamper United Nations efforts to implement a stalled troop withdrawal deal in the main port of Hodeidah, a lifeline for millions of Yemenis, that was agreed at peace talks in Sweden last year.