WINDS OF WAR BLOW OVER RED SEA

The Houthis naval blockade on Israel is creating serious tensions in the Red Sea as the United States and its allies threaten Yemen with war. The group has fired several missiles and drones at the southernmost Israeli city of Eilat since the beginning of the Israeli war on the Palestinian Gaza Strip. More importantly, it assaulted a number of Israeli-owned ships and announced a blockade on all ships heading to Israel. In recent days, the Houthis carried out several attacks to reinforce their blockade. On December 13, the group fired missiles at Ardmore Encounter, a Marshall Islands-flagged commercial tanker, but the vessel was not hit. The USS Mason responded to the tanker’s distress call and shot down a drone launched by the Houthis. Later on December 14, a Houthi-launched missile was fired at the Hong Kong-flagged Maersk Gibraltar, though it missed its target. The next day, December 15, the Houthis claimed responsibility for attacks on two Liberian-flagged vessels identified as MSC Alanya and MSC Palatium III. Also on December 15, it was reported that the Liberian-flagged Al-Jasrah caught fire after being hit by a Houthi-launched projectile while sailing through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. On December 16, Royal Navy destroyer HMS Diamond shot down a drone over the Red Sea while it was targeting a commercial ship. And on December 18, Houthis claimed to have launched attacks targeting two cargo vessels in the Red Sea near Mocha port, the MSC Clara and the Norwegian-owned Swan Atlantic. The Houthis’s attacks forced most major shipping companies to stop operations in the Red Sea. In response to the Houthis blockade, the U.S. launched Operation Prosperity Guardian to “ensure the safety of maritime traffic” in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb and Gulf of Aden on December 18. The United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles and Spain will take part in the operation. On December 19, Bloomberg reported that the U.S. and its allies are considering possible military strikes against the Houthis in a recognition that Operation Prosperity Guardian may not be enough. In a statement released on the same day, the Houthis said that the coalition was meant to support the Israeli war on Gaza and threatens shipping in the Red Sea. It also stressed that the blockade on ships sailing to Israel will continue. Operation Prosperity Guardian will lead to more tensions in the Red Sea and complicated shipping through Bab al-Mandeb. However, a confrontation will not likely break out unless the U.S. attacks the Houthis.