Sanaa/Cairo, Dec 15 (EFE).- A series of attacks launched from Yemen territory on Friday, on top of those carried out in recent days, have sparked an escalation that has put global trade in the vital Red Sea-Arabian Sea route on red alert as Yemeni Houthis seek to prevent any Israeli ships from sailing off their coasts.
The Royal Navy, United Kingdom’s naval force, warned of three incidents in the Red Sea and Bab-el-Mandeb on Friday, the most alerts issued all year, according to its official website.
Among the alerts, one of the most serious was the impact of an “unknown object” on a ship, causing an onboard fire without casualties, about 60 miles southwest of Al Hudaydah, one of Yemen’s main Red Sea ports.
Another action, already described by the Royal Navy as an “attack,” was another “explosion on board causing a fire, now extinguished” on another vessel.
This attack occurred near Bab-el-Mandeb, 30 miles southwest of the port city on the Red Sea coast of Yemen, Mokha. The “vessel crew” were safe, according to the informant.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea claimed responsibility for these two latest attacks, saying that the rebel navy “conducted a military operation against two container ships, the MSC Alanya and the MSC Palatium III,” both bearing Libyan flags, “on their way to Israel.”
According to their position on the maritime tracking portal Marine Traffic, both ships are confirmed to be between the Red Sea and the Bab-el-Mandeb. However, they were headed to the Saudi city of Jeddah, without Israel appearing on the route.
International trade in jeopardy
Abdulghani Al Iryani, senior researcher at the Sana’a Center for Strategic Studies, assured EFE that the Houthis are “disrupting world trade, which will affect the lives of billions of people.”
“The option of using force will only further disrupt international trade, while a nuanced political response can end this situation and turn them into a constructive partner in the restoration of stability in Yemen,” Al Iryani said.
This comes after the US suggested it would consider deploying an international naval force with other allied countries to deal with the Iranian-backed Houthis, which have attacked ships in the Red Sea.
Al Iryani asserted that retaliation would be “long-term and devastating for the movement, and could include reducing humanitarian aid and starving the population under its control, and designating it as a terrorist movement.”
Yemen is one of the countries suffering from one of the worst humanitarian disasters in the world, according to the United Nations.
Meanwhile, Noam Reydan, an energy scholar at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, wrote in an article for the same group, “If the Houthi attacks escalate and cause significant disruptions to Red Sea shipping traffic, both global energy security and dry bulk cargo trade, especially in Europe, would take a further hit.”
While the impact of the Red Sea attacks “appears limited so far, the risk of escalation or miscalculation causing deeper commercial ripples cannot be excluded.”
Uncontrolled piracy
Another serious problem is the pirates. The Royal Navy said on Friday that it had received a report that the crew who were attacked on Thursday “no longer have control over the vessel.”
“The crew vessel is currently heading towards Somalia, approximately 680 miles east of Bosaso, Somalia. All crew are reported to be safe at this time,” the alert said.
Over the past two months, the rebels have launched several rocket and drone attacks against southern Israel. The targets have been ships flying the flag of the Jewish state or owned by Israeli companies in the Red Sea and the Bab-el-Mandeb.
The Bab-el-Mandeb is a vital strategic link in the maritime trade route between the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean via the Red Sea and the Suez Canal.
It separates the Arabian Peninsula from the Horn of Africa, a fragile region that has suffered for decades from high levels of violence and instability within and beyond its borders, and in recent years has served as a platform for piracy. EFE
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