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Thursday, March 21, 2024
Houthis agree not to attack Chinese, Russian ships in Red Sea and Gulf of Aden – report
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Yemen’s Houthis have told China and Russia that their ships can sail through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden without being attacked, Bloomberg News reports.
The Iran-backed rebels began attacking ships in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea last November, a campaign they say is intended to signal solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza amid the war between Israel and Hamas, which began with the terror group’s devastating October 7 assault on southern Israel.
The Houthi attacks have disrupted global shipping, forcing firms to reroute to longer and more expensive journeys around southern Africa. The cost of insuring a seven-day voyage through the Red Sea has risen by hundreds of thousands of dollars. Beyond economic damage, the attacks have also served to stoke fears that the Israel-Hamas war could spread to destabilize the wider Middle East.
The Times of Israel Community.