Hapag-Lloyd To Dodge Red Sea Route Until January

German international shipping and container transportation company Hapag-Lloyd AG has decided to dodge the Red Sea Route, where Houthi rebels are targeting ships with rockets and drones, for two more weeks. Hapag-Lloyd AG on Friday had instructed their container ships to avoid the Red Sea Route, and in the latest development, it decided to extend the pause for at least the next two weeks, UK broadcaster Sky News reported on Monday, citing comments from Nils Haupt, a senior communications director at the shipping company.

Hapag-Lloyd is the world”s fifth-largest container line by capacity.

“Today in the crisis meeting, we decided to no longer have ships crossing the Red Sea,” Haupt was cited as saying.

“It”s basically not safe for our crew, it”s not safe for the vessel, and it”s not safe for the cargo of our customers.”

Many other leading container shipping and tanker companies, such as Mersk,Evergreen Line, and BP, had already decided to avoid the Red Sea Route in order to escape from Houthi rebels who launched attacks on the ships in protest against Israel”s Gaza attack.

The Houthi rebels are targeting ships travelling through the Bab al-Mandab Strait, also known as the Gate of Tears, which is a channel 20 miles (32km) wide, with drones and rockets declaring their support to Hamas, a Palestinian militant group that is fighting against Israel in Gaza. The Houthis argue that they were targeting the ships that carry goods to Israel.

With this, container ships have been compelled to take longer routes around Africa, which has cost them heavy operation expenses. The Red Sea is one of the world’s most significant routes for oil and liquefied natural gas shipments, as well as for consumer goods, with nearly 15% of goods imported into Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa being shipped from Asia and the Gulf by sea. That includes 21.5% of refined oil and more than 13% of crude oil, according to an analysis by S&P Global Market Intelligence.