Undeterred by US, UK strikes, Houthis Attack More Ships; Hits US-owned Vessel
Days after the US and the UK attack on several Houthis’ sites in Yemen, the Houthis have continued to target more ships in the Red Sea shipping lanes. On Monday, a US-owned ship was hit off the coast of Yemen in the Gulf of Aden. A British maritime risk company called Ambrey observed that the attack targeted the US in retaliation to the US military strike on Houthis positions in Yemen.
Though the vessels were not to Israel or heading towards it, it is learnt that the Houthis have begun targeting the US and UK- ships too. According to a statement by the Houthis spokesperson, though the militant group has been targeting ships to Israel for its genocidal war in Gaza until now, with the US and UK attack on Yemen, they now consider American and British ships as “legitimate targets.”
The latest attack on Monday on the US-owned commercial ship, the Gibraltar Eagle, a bulk carrier sailed under the flag of the Marshall Islands followed the missile attack towards an American warship the day before Monday. According to the statement by the ship company, With loads of steel products, the vessel was moving to Suez Canal from the South Korea.
However, the continuous disruption of the critical maritime route connecting East and West is causing huge losses for several European companies. With the Houthis attack, the number of ships, which were sailing through the Red Sea has become half compared to the previous year this time. Factories in Europe have already said that they will suspend their production due to the supply chain disruption and higher shipping prices, the New York Times reported. On Monday, Qatar also suspended shipments of liquefied natural gas via the Red Sea following the escalation after the US attack in Yemen.
However, as Israel vows to continue its strike even after crossing 100 days of war and the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying “No one will stop us,” the conflict in the Red Sea is likely to persist longer, increasing the military stature of the Yemen’s Houthis.
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