The Arab Coalition supporting the legitimate government of Yemen said Tuesday that it responded to a call for help from an Iranian ship, requesting the evacuation of a crew member for medical reasons.
“This gesture of Saudi Arabia follows the directive of the wise leadership and based on its humanitarian role as usual in such cases,” Coalition spokesman Colonel Turki al-Maliki said in a statement Tuesday.
"The leadership of the joint forces has dealt with the situation according to what is dictated by our Islamic religion and human values, despite the threat represented by this suspect vessel, and the hostile acts it carries out against coalition forces and the interests of the Yemeni people and its continued threats to maritime routes and global trade in the Red Sea," Maliki added.
The Jeddah Maritime Rescue Coordination Center (JMRCC) at the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) received a distress call to evacuate a crew member of the ship "Saviz" located 95 nautical miles northwest of the port of Hodeidah. The crew member was subjected to serious injury and his condition deteriorated on board the ship, he stated.
Maliki added that the coalition responded to the call and evacuated the injured member through medical evacuation helicopters, after which he was transported to a military hospital in Jazan, Saudi Arabia.
The coalition provided the casualty with primary medical assistance on board, to later evacuate him due to his critical health condition, added Maliki -- The Saudi military flew rescue paramedics to Saviz, then they flew the injured Iranian to a military hospital in Jazan.
The spokesman said that Saudi Arabia had received a formal request from the Iranian Ambassador to the Permanent Mission of Iran to the United Nations in Geneva seeking assistance.
