Yemen's Houthi rebels attacked a Saudi oil tanker in the Red Sea, causing "minor damage" to the vessel, the Saudi-led coalition said Wednesday.

The kingdom's Al-Ekhbariya television cited the coalition saying the oil tanker was "the target of a Houthi-Iranian terrorist attack."

"The oil tanker sustained minor damage and the (Houthi) militias almost caused an environmental catastrophe," the coalition said.

The statement did not provide details on the name or size of the tanker.

Earlier, the pro-Houthi Al-Masirah television said that the rebels had targeted a Saudi warship named Al-Dammam, without providing further details.

Impoverished Yemen has remained wracked by violence since 2014, when the Houthis and their allies overran much of the country, including capital Sanaa.

The conflict escalated in 2015 when Saudi Arabia and its Sunni-Arab allies -- including the United Arab Emirates -- launched a massive air campaign in Yemen aimed at rolling back Houthi gains.

The following year, U.N.-sponsored peace talks in Kuwait failed to end the destructive conflict.

The ongoing violence has devastated Yemen's infrastructure, including water and sanitation systems, prompting the U.N. to describe the situation as "one of the worst humanitarian disasters of modern times."