Washington: The Group of Seven (G7) calls on the Houthis to immediately cease attacks on civilians and stop threatening international shipping lanes, according to a joint statement published by the Foreign Ministry of Japan.

“We especially call on the Houthis to immediately cease attacks on civilians and threats to international shipping lanes and commercial vessels and release the M/V Galaxy Leader and its crew, illegally seized from international waters on November 19,” the statement said on Tuesday.

The Houthis said earlier in November that they had seized a Bahamian-flagged ship, Galaxy Leader, over its alleged links to an Israeli businessman. The rebels said they would treat its 25-man crew as guests as long as they were not Israelis and warned that they would continue targeting Israel-linked ships until Israel stopped attacking the Gaza Strip.