French warship destroys drone that targeted Norwegian tanker

A French warship, known as the FREMM Languedoc, has destroyed a drone that targeted the Norwegian oil tanker Strinda by Yemen's Houthis, the French defence ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

The ministry said the attack had taken place in the evening of 11 December, and had caused a fire on board the tanker, which was sailing under the Norwegian flag.

A spokesperson for Yemen's Houthi administration, Yahya Saree, confirmed that it was behind the attack on a Norway-flagged chemical tanker off the Yemeni coast on its way to Israel.

"In support of the oppressed Palestinian people, currently reeling under the destruction, killing and siege of the Gaza Strip, and to heed the calls of our free Yemeni people, the Yemeni Naval Forces carried out an outstanding military operation against MV Strinda," Saree said.