Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi movement has released the crew of a cargo ship more than a year after its fighters hijacked the vessel in the Red Sea, as part of its campaign of attacks in support of Hamas in its war against Israel.

The Iranian-backed rebel group in Yemen made the announcement after the Houthis said they would scale back attacks given the cease-fire in the conflict in Gaza.

Yemen's Houthi movement says it has released the crew of the cargo ship Galaxy Leader, which its fighters seized in November 2023 at the start of their campaign of attacks on Red Sea shipping linked to the Gaza war.

Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis have released the crew of the Galaxy Leader more than a year after they seized the Bahamas-flagged vessel off the Yemeni Red Sea coast, Houthi-owned Al Masirah TV reported on Wednesday.

Twenty-five nationals from Bulgaria, Ukraine, the Philippines, Mexico and Romania were handed over to Oman in coordination with Hamas

Yemen's Houthi rebels said Wednesday they released the crew of the Galaxy Leader, a vehicle carrier seized in November 2023 at the start of their attacks on shipping in the Red Sea corridor over the Israel-Hamas war.

At the start of the Houthis' campaign against Israel in solidarity with Gaza, helicopter-borne rebels stormed the vehicle carrier Galaxy Leader and detained its 25 international crew.