Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free
Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Houthi militants detonated a one-way unmanned surface vessel in the Red Sea on Thursday, marking a defiant escalation by the Iran-backed rebel group a day after the US threatened a military response to such attacks.
The detonation — the Houthis’ first use of a USV in its latest Red Sea campaign — did not damage any ships, but occurred despite the US and 11 allies warning the rebels on Wednesday of military action unless they halted attacks on vessels in the Red Sea, a crucial global shipping lane.
“The introduction of a one-way attack USV is a concern,” said Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, the top commander of US naval forces in the Middle East.
The attack comes amid mounting fears that Israel’s war with Hamas could widen to involve other countries, and comes just after strikes in Beirut and Baghdad targeted senior militants and leaders, and a terror attack in Iran killed more than 100 people.
There have been 25 attacks on merchant vessels transiting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since November 18, Cooper said. The US in December announced Operation Prosperity Guardian to step up patrols of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden to protect commercial traffic.
More than 20 countries are contributing to the task force, including five warships from the US, UK and France patrolling the Red Sea, while the US and other countries have also provided manned and unmanned reconnaissance aircraft.
The USS Dwight D Eisenhower, an American aircraft carrier, is in the area. Greece and Denmark have said they will also send warships.
The attacks in the Red Sea have already forced some shipping lines and energy companies to avoid the area by redirecting their vessels around the Cape of Good Hope instead of through the Suez Canal, adding weeks to voyages.
Cooper on Thursday repeated global calls for the Yemen-based Houthis to halt attacks on commercial shipping. The Houthis, which have controlled northern Yemen and the country’s capital Sana’a since civil war erupted in 2014, have said they will not stop their campaign so long as Israel continues its offensive in Gaza.
“These Houthi attacks are for sure destabilising and contrary to international law, and clearly as has been articulated by many, must stop immediately,” Cooper said.
The Biden administration has blamed Iran for enabling Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, although President Joe Biden and other senior administration officials have said they are not seeking to widen the war between Israel and Hamas. Still, US officials have stepped up warnings that they would target Houthis directly if the maritime attacks continue.
Analysts remain fearful that the war between Israel and Hamas could spiral into a regional conflict. Israel is believed to have killed a senior Hamas leader in Beirut earlier this week, risking a broader conflict between Israel and the Lebanon-based Hizbollah.
Read the full article here
