Letter to shipping companies

Yemen: Houthis ban passage through waters

The Houthi militia officially banned the passage of ships in the waters they control off Yemen on Thursday.(Bild: Associated Press)

On Thursday, the Houthi militia officially banned the passage of ships in the waters they control off Yemen. Meanwhile, another cargo ship was attacked with rockets off the coast and caught fire.

According to the militia, it sent a letter to shipping companies and insurance companies with links to Israel, the USA and the UK on Thursday. In it, they prohibit passage through the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea if the shipments are connected to Israel.

First letter to the shipping industry
It is the first formal letter from the rebel group to the shipping industry. The sender of the text is a "Humanitarian Coordination Center" of the Houthis. "The center was established in Sanaa to coordinate the safe and peaceful passage of ships and boats that have no connection to Israel," a senior Houthi member told Reuters news agency.

One of the most important shipping routes for world trade runs along Yemen, through which freighters from the Indian Ocean reach the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal in Egypt. In recent weeks, the rebels have repeatedly fired on merchant ships and warships in the Red Sea from Yemen.

Thousands of kilometers of detours
Numerous container ships therefore avoid the important sea route and instead choose a detour of thousands of kilometers around Africa. In response to the attacks, the USA and the UK have carried out several military strikes against Houthi positions in Yemen.

The Houthi are supported by Iran and have shown solidarity with the radical Islamic Hamas, which is waging war against Israel in the Gaza Strip. They have repeatedly declared that they will only cease their attacks in the Red Sea once a ceasefire has been agreed in the Gaza Strip and food and aid supplies are allowed into the coastal area inhabited by Palestinians.

Fire on freighter after rocket attack 
According to the UK Maritime Merchant Shipping Office (UKMTO), part of the British Navy, a freighter was fired upon with two rockets about 70 nautical miles southeast of the Yemeni port city of Aden early on Thursday morning, causing a fire to break out on board (see posting on X below).

Forces from the International Maritime Defense Alliance were deployed to respond to the incident, it added. Ships in the region were urged to exercise caution and asked to report any suspicious activity.