US and UK Threatened! Houthis Deploy Submarine Weapons!

Breaking News ! The Houthi group in Yemen has used “submarine weapons” in their attacks on ships sailing in the Red Sea, which they say is a show of solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza War. Houthi militants have launched repeated drone and missile attacks in the Red Sea, the Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Gulf of Aden since November in support of Palestinians, as the Israel-Hamas war continues and the death toll in Gaza reaches nearly 30,000. “Operations in the Red Sea and Arabian Sea, the Bab al-Mandab Strait, and the Gulf of Aden continue, increase, and are effective,” added Abdul Malik al-Houthi. He did not provide details about the intended submarine weapons. The leader’s speech came on the same day that the Houthis sent official notices to shippers and insurance companies about what they said was a ban on ships linked to Israel, the US and the UK from sailing in the surrounding seas. This was in an effort to strengthen their military campaign in support of Palestine. Yemen’s Houthi group has announced that ships wholly or partly owned by Israeli individuals or entities and Israeli-flagged vessels are “prohibited“ from entering the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea, Reuters news agency quoted a statement as saying. Quoted by AFP, the militia leader, Abdul Malik al-Houthi said in his televised speech, on Thursday (22/2). The Houthi communications, the first to the shipping industry outlining the ban, came in the form of two notices from the Houthi’s new Humanitarian Operations Coordination Center, sent to insurance companies and shipping companies. In the Notice, ships wholly or partly owned by Israeli individuals or entities and ships flying the Israeli flag, or owned by US or British individuals or entities, or sailing under their flags, are prohibited from entering the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea. This warning comes amid continuing attacks launched in response to Israel’s war on Gaza which has disrupted international trade on the shortest shipping route between Europe and Asia. “The Humanitarian Operations Center was established in Sanaa to coordinate the safe and peaceful passage of ships and vessels unrelated to Israel,” a senior Houthi official told Reuters on Thursday. The Houthi Humanitarian Operations Coordination Center, an agency controlled by the group, sent a statement to shipping insurance companies and companies operating in the region. The group’s actions have disrupted routes that account for around 12 percent of world maritime traffic, and forced companies to take longer and more expensive routes around Africa. The Houthis Have Calculated the Risks The al-Houthi militant leader said the attacks reflected Israel’s escalating military operations in the Gaza Strip, and that counteroffensive from the US-UK coalition had failed to halt his campaign. “The Houthis have targeted shipping with such links (to Israeli, US and UK commercial interests) and there has been increased alertness regarding shipping,” one shipping source said. The attacks have disrupted world trade and reset shipping rates to higher levels. Shipping and insurance sources on Thursday said there had been no change in rates since the warning was issued. According to British maritime security firm Ambrey and tracking data, the British-owned Palauan-flagged ship Islander was en route to Egypt from Thailand. The British Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported earlier on Thursday that two missiles set fire to a ship about 70 nautical miles southeast of Aden, Yemen. The ship and its crew were reported safe and continued their journey to the next port. The Houthi group said the Rubymar was at risk of sinking but a US defense official said the ship remained afloat. Rubymar “sat quietly in the water,” Ambrey said. “The rescue was reported to have taken place (yesterday), but was cancelled,” the company said, adding that a navigation alert for nearby vessels was in place. No ships were sunk or their crew killed, but there are concerns about the fate of the cargo ship Rubymar which was hit on February 18 and whose crew was evacuated. Options for ships still afloat are being considered, ship security company ISS-SAPU told Reuters on Thursday. ISS-SAPU was involved in assisting the rescue efforts of the ship’s crew. Earlier on Thursday, the Israeli military also said it intercepted targets in the Red Sea region after sirens warning of rockets and missiles were heard in the southern city of Eilat. Give your best thoughts and opinions in the comments column! Thank You. #news #war #redseacrisis #houthi