Published by Associated Newspapers Ltd
The terrorists threatening to grind international shipping to a halt: Houthi sinking of second ship stokes fears that Suez Canal could become off limits
Yemen’s Houthi rebels have launched a new and yet more violent campaign of attacks targeting cargo ships in the Red Sea, sinking two vessels, killing some of their crew and allegedly taking others hostage.
The terror attacks represent the latest chapter of the rebels’ explosive campaign over the Israel-Hamas war that threatens to plunge international shipping into chaos by deterring cargo vessels from transiting the Suez Canal.
Between November 2023 and December 2024, the Houthi rebel group officially known as Ansar Allah targeted more than 100 vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two and killing four sailors, in what they said was retaliation for Israel‘s offensive in Gaza.
Their campaign has greatly reduced the flow of trade through the Red Sea corridor, which typically sees $1 trillion of goods move through it annually, and the latest attacks have seen insurance costs skyrocket.
In May, Donald Trump announced he had struck a deal with the rebel group in which the White House agreed to stop bombing Houthi targets in return for an end to shipping attacks.
The Trump administration had presented its 52-day bombing campaign on Yemen as being successful in restoring freedom of navigation in the Red Sea.
But Yemeni Houthi militia leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi on Thursday embarrassed the US President, declaring that no company could be permitted to transport goods related to Israel as his group launched another round of murderous assaults.
Now, two more ships – the Magic Seas and Eternity C – lie at the bottom of the Red Sea, days after they were hit with drone attacks and with rocket-propelled grenades.