What's at stake as Yemen's Houthis renew Red Sea shipping attacks?
Yemen's Houthi rebels have resumed their attacks on Red Sea shipping, saying they aim to force Israel to cease fire in Gaza -- a move that threatens a truce with Washington and rattles maritime trade.
The Iran-backed rebels allege that the two vessels they attacked earlier this week -- the Magic Seas and the Eternity C -- were linked to trade with Israel.
But their renewed campaign comes at a pivotal moment when Washington and Tehran are weighing talks following a devastating 12-day Iran-Israel war, while Hamas and Israel are holding truce negotiations in Qatar.
What's at stake for the rebels and why have they decided to resume attacks after a gap of more than six months?
- Why now? -
The rebels, who have also mounted direct attacks on Israel, have launched more than 100 attacks on vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November 2023, according to the Joint Maritime Information Centre run by Western navies.
They paused their attacks during a short-lived Gaza truce earlier this year before renewing them last weekend.
The rebels say their aim is to support Palestinians in Gaza. Their political leader, Mahdi al-Mashat, told Hamas negotiators in Doha to "negotiate with your heads held high, for we are with you and all the resources of our people will support you" until the war ends.
But analysts say their resumption of attacks goes beyond support for Gaza.
It comes shortly after Iran fought a devastating war with Israel without support from its allies in the so-called "axis of resistance", which also includes Hamas and Lebanon's Hezbollah.
"This is a reminder from the Revolutionary Guard, through its most important ally (the Houthis), that what was withheld in the previous round (of fighting), if repeated, can be activated," said the chairperson of the Sanaa Center for Strategic Studies, Maged al-Madhaji.
Noam Raydan, who tracks maritime attacks for the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said the Houthis had continued to monitor ship movements throughout the pause in attacks.
"They've ensured that their presence is always felt", she said.
- What are they hoping to achieve? -
Although Iran is their main backer, the Houthis are not just a Tehran proxy: they have ambitions of their own and dreams of a broader regional role.
Farea Al-Muslimi, a research fellow at British think tank Chatham House, described the attacks as a "power move" that enabled the Houthis to "project more power regionally and internationally".
Israel's wars in Gaza and Lebanon have severely weakened both Hamas and Hezbollah, leaving the Houthis as the only member of the "axis of resistance" to emerge relatively unscathed.
The rebels have endured repeated air strikes by Israel in response to their drone and missile attacks.
Washington too carried out an intensive bombing campaign earlier this year before agreeing to cease fire in May in return for an end to Houthi attacks on international shipping.
"While the US campaign badly hit the Houthis' communication and some military capabilities, they still have huge stock and rebuilt their communications quickly," said Muslimi, adding that their maritime power "has been booming".
He said that in comparison with their attacks on Israel, which had had only limited success, the Houthis' attacks on shipping had proved "a very efficient way to make the entire West, and most of the east, bleed."
- What are the risks? -
The Houthis' campaign has caused major disruption to the vital shipping lane through the Bab al-Mandeb strait and the Red Sea that normally carries about 12 percent of global trade.
With insurance premiums skyrocketing, many shipping firms have opted to make the time-consuming detour around the southern tip of Africa instead.
"Transit via the Bab al-Mandeb strait remains low compared to 2023 – a drop by over 50 percent," Raydan told AFP.
She said the rebels had taken advantage of a decreased naval presence in the area to mount their attacks.
"The Houthis appear to have more freedom now to assault freedom of navigation," she said.
The future of a fragile ceasefire with the United States meant to ensure freedom of navigation in the Red Sea is now uncertain.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar called for action to stop further Huthi attacks.
"If the Houthis are not confronted, this problem will only grow," he warned.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
MTV Lebanon
17 minutes ago
- MTV Lebanon
Blast in Yemen Kills 5 Children Who Were Playing Soccer
Five children in southwestern Yemen died after an explosive device detonated in a residential area where they were playing soccer, rights groups and eye witnesses said Saturday. The circumstances surrounding their deaths on Friday night in the Al-Hashmah subdistrict of Taiz province remain unclear. However, the Yemen Center for Human Rights and another rights group called Eye of Humanity along with Houthi-controlled Al-Masirah TV said an artillery shell was fired by militias backed by the Islah party, which is allied to the internationally recognized government in south Yemen. A spokesperson for the United Nations children's agency UNICEF told The Associated Press that they are aware of reports about the incident but can't verify the facts at the moment. Two local residents who were eyewitnesses, Ahmed al-Sharee and Khaled al-Areki, told the AP that the children were playing soccer when the explosion happened. At least three people with minor to moderate injuries were also taken to the hospital, according to the eyewitnesses. Meanwhile, Mahmoud al-Mansi, another eyewitness, said the explosive was directed from an area where forces allied with the Islah party were present. The Yemen Center for Human Rights condemned the incident in a report that included graphic photos of the children's torn bodies. Citing healthcare sources at Al-Rafai Hospital, where the victims arrived unresponsive, the group said they died from shrapnel injuries. Two of the children were 12 years old, while two others were 14 years old, according to the group. The age of the fifth child is unknown. Taiz city, the capital of the province of the same name, has been a battleground, pitting the Iran-backed Houthi militias and other militias backed by the Islah party against each other and other factions in Yemen's civil war. The city was under Houthi blockade since 2016, restricting the freedom of movement and flow of essential goods to residents, but Houthis recently opened key roads. Yemen's ruinous civil war began in 2014 when the Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa, and much of northern Yemen, forcing the internationally recognized government into exile. A coalition led by Saudi Arabia and including the United Arab Emirates intervened the following year to try to restore the government to power. The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council controls much of the south, which has been fractured by the civil war. The council advocates for the south's secession and has its own militia forces, allied to the internationally recognized government fighting the Houthis.
LBCI
12 hours ago
- LBCI
Iran says any nuclear deal must respect 'right' to enrich uranium
Iran insisted Saturday that any new nuclear deal must respect its right under the Non-Proliferation Treaty to enrich uranium for peaceful purposes, rejecting U.S. demands for a halt. "I would like to emphasize that in any negotiated solution, the rights of the Iranian people on the nuclear issue, including the right to enrichment, must be respected," Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told diplomats in Tehran. "We will not have any agreement in which enrichment is not included." AFP
LBCI
12 hours ago
- LBCI
Iran FM says 'ready to build confidence through diplomacy'
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Saturday that Tehran was "ready" for diplomacy on its nuclear program, weeks after Israel and the United States struck its facilities despite negotiations. "The Islamic Republic of Iran remains ready to build this confidence through diplomacy, but before that, our counterparts must convince us that they want diplomacy and not that diplomacy is a cover for other goals and objectives they have," Araghchi told diplomats in the Iranian capital. AFP
