From the Liveblog of
Sunday, January 7, 2024
Houthis suggest Red Sea ships should deny Israel links to avoid being attacked
Gianluca Pacchiani is the Arab affairs reporter for The Times of Israel
The Iran-backed Houthi rebel group proposes that ships transiting the Bab El-Mandeb strait in the Red Sea declare they have no connection with Israel and will therefore not be assaulted by the group, which has been terrorizing ships in the region for three months.
The Houthis suggest that their proposal is a “simple and inexpensive solution” to de-escalate tensions in the Red Sea.
Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, head of the group’s supreme revolutionary committee, publishes a post on his X account addressing international shipping companies and transportation ministries, instructing that each ship approaching the strait should broadcast the sentence: “We have no relation with Israel.”
If a ship makes the declaration but then heads for an Israeli port, it will be “blacklisted” and will be seized the following time it attempts to cross the Red Sea, Al-Houthi threatens.
The rebels have launched more than 100 drone and missile strikes toward targets in the Red Sea and Israel since the war erupted, according to Pentagon figures, endangering a transit route that carries up to 12 percent of global trade.
The Times of Israel Community.