Houthis escalate threats to target all ships bound for israel in red sea

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HOUTHIS ESCALATE THREATS TO TARGET ALL SHIPS BOUND FOR ISRAEL IN RED SEA
By: FDD - for Defense of Democracies - 12-10-23
Re: https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2023/12...el-in-red-sea/

Latest Developments:

on December 9 to target all ships heading to Israel via the Red Sea. “If Gaza does not receive the food and medicine it needs, all ships in the Red Sea bound for Israeli ports, regardless of their nationality, will become a target for our armed forces,” Houthi spokesperson Yahya Sare’e said on Saturday. The Houthis have increased attacks on ships in the last weeks and have carried out missile and drone attacks on Israel. The threat to target all ships bound for Israel marks a new escalation in tensions in the Red Sea. In addition, on December 10 a French naval warship shot down two Houthi drones in the Red Sea.

Expert Analysis:

“The Houthis are seeking to blockade Israel by threatening all ships heading to Israel via the Red Sea. This represents a serious escalation. The Houthis have increasingly sought to join the Hamas war in Gaza and believe they will face no repercussions for their numerous attacks. The Iranian-backed Houthis should be designated as a terrorist group and their threats to free navigation of the seas and attacks should be met with force by the international community.” — Seth J. Frantzman, FDD Adjunct Fellow

“Make no mistake that the decision to target Israel-bound vessels is an Iranian directive. Like other Iranian-backed terrorist groups in the region, the Houthis are being used extensively in this war to mount pressure on the international community to force a ceasefire on Israel, thus giving Hamas a chance to survive the war.” — Joe Truzman, Research Analyst at FDD’s Long War Journal

Houthi Attacks Target Commercial Vessels:

The Iran-backed Houthis hijacked the Galaxy Leader commercial ship in the Red Sea on November 19, seizing its 25 crew and taking the ship to a port off the coast of Yemen. They increased their attacks in late November and early December. On December 4, U.S. Central Command said there had been “four attacks against three separate commercial vessels operating in international waters in the southern Red Sea.” The Houthis have also continued to hold hostage the crew of the Galaxy Leader and is providing them with only limited contact with their families. The attacks on ships in the Red Sea have caused prices for cargo shipment to increase.

Houthi Drones and Missiles Threaten Israel and Naval Ships:

The Houthis targeted Israel’s southern city of Eilat with a surface-to-surface missile on December 6. The missile was shot down by Israel’s Arrow air defense system. The Houthis began to target Israel with drones and long-range missiles in mid-October as part of their support for Hamas in Gaza. U.S. naval warships have shot down a number of Houthi drones in the Red Sea. On December 5 and 6, the USS Carney and USS Mason downed drones in the Red Sea.

More: Related Analysis subject links on this site: (see below)
[https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2023/12...l-in-red-sea/]

a. Iranian-Backed Houthis Hijack Ship in Red Sea,” FDD Flash Brief

b. “Houthis in Yemen Target Vessels in Red Sea,” FDD Flash Brief

c. “Israel Activates Arrow Defense System Against Houthi Missile Over Red Sea,” FDD Flash Brief
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Personal note: It seems more activity is growing in the Red Sea.
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Are we surprised? No it's inevitable -
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Missile Strikes Oil Tanker off Yemen’s Coast Amid Growing Threat Posed by Houthi Rebels
By: JON GAMBRELL / AP UPDATED: 12/12/23 3:35 AM EST
Re: https://time.com/6358175/oil-tanker-...-rebels-yemen/

Photo Link: https://api.time.com/wp-content/uplo...ality=85&w=750
A different large oil tanker anchored off the gulf of Aqaba in the Red Sea.Nick Brundle Photography—Getty Images/iStock

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A missile fired by Yemen's Houthi rebels slammed into a Norwegian-flagged tanker in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen near a key maritime chokepoint, the rebels and authorities said Tuesday.

The assault on the oil and chemical tanker Strinda expands a campaign by the Iranian-backed rebels targeting ships close to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait into apparently now striking those that have no clear ties to Israel. That potentially imperils cargo and energy shipments coming through the Suez Canal and further widens the international impact of the Israel-Hamas war now raging in the Gaza Strip.

Houthi military spokesperson Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree issued a video statement saying the rebels only fired on the vessel when it “rejected all warning calls.”

The U.S. military’s Central Command issued a statement Tuesday saying an anti-ship cruise missile “launched from a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen” hit the Strinda.

“There were no U.S. ships in the vicinity at the time of the attack, but the USS Mason responded … and is currently rendering assistance,” Central Command said. The Mason is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer that has been involved in several of the recent incidents off Yemen.

Read More: As U.S. Downs Israel-Bound Missiles From Yemen, Biden Faces Risk of Escalation

The private intelligence firms Ambrey and Dryad Global had earlier confirmed the attack happened near the crucial Bab el-Mandeb Strait separating East Africa from the Arabian Peninsula.

Geir Belsnes, the CEO of the Strinda’s operator, J. Ludwig Mowinckels Rederi, also confirmed the attack took place.

“All crew members are unhurt and safe,” Belsnes said. “The vessel is now proceeding to a safe port.”

The Strinda was coming from Malaysia and was bound for the Suez Canal and then on to Italy with a cargo of palm oil, Belsnes said. Saree alleged without offering any evidence that the ship was bound for Israel.

The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which provides warnings to sailors in the Middle East, earlier reported a fire aboard an unidentified vessel off Mokha, Yemen, with all the crew aboard being safe. The coordinates of that fire correspond to the last known location of the Strinda based off satellite tracking data analyzed by The Associated Press.

The Houthis have carried out a series of attacks on vessels in the Red Sea and also launched drones and missiles targeting Israel. In recent days, they have threatened to attack any vessel they believe is either going to or coming from Israel, though there was no immediate apparent link between the Strinda and Israel.

Israel’s national security adviser, Tzachi Hanegbi, said over the weekend that Israel has called on its Western allies to address the threats from Yemen and would give them “some time” to organize a response. But he said if the threats persist, “we will act to remove this blockade.”

Analysts suggest the Houthis hope to shore up waning popular support after years of civil war in Yemen between it and Saudi-backed forces.

France and the United States have stopped short of saying their ships were targeted in rebel attacks, but have said Houthi drones have headed toward their ships and were shot down in self-defense. Washington so far has declined to directly respond to the attacks, as has Israel, whose military continues to describe the ships as not having links to their country.

Global shipping has increasingly been targeted as the Israel-Hamas war threatens to become a wider regional conflict — even during a brief pause in fighting during which Hamas exchanged hostages for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. The collapse of the truce and the resumption of a punishing Israeli ground offensive and airstrikes on Gaza have raised the risk of more sea attacks.

The Bab el-Mandeb Strait is only 29 kilometers (18 miles) wide at its narrowest point, limiting traffic to two channels for inbound and outbound shipments, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Nearly 10% of all oil traded at sea passes through it.

In November, Houthis seized a vehicle transport ship linked to Israel in the Red Sea off Yemen. The rebels still hold the vessel near the port city of Hodeida. Separately, a container ship owned by an Israeli billionaire came under attack by a suspected Iranian drone in the Indian Ocean.

A separate, tentative cease-fire between the Houthis and a Saudi-led coalition fighting on behalf of Yemen’s exiled government has held for months despite that country’s long war. That’s raised concerns that any wider conflict in the sea — or a potential reprisal strike from Western forces — could reignite those tensions in the Arab world’s poorest nation.

In 2016, the U.S. launched Tomahawk cruise missiles that destroyed three coastal radar sites in Houthi-controlled territory to retaliate for missiles being fired at U.S. Navy ships at the time.

—Associated Press writer Samy Magdy in Cairo contributed to this report.
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Personal note: Gas prices will rise no doubt!
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