Ships veer away from Red Sea after Houthis threaten marine traffic

Four tankers changed their navigational course in the Red Sea today with two signaling the Suez Canal as their new destination after Yemen’s Houthi militia warned it would attack vessels sailing to Saudi Arabian ports, ship tracking data shows.

The vessels all changed their direction, with the other two signaling their destination as open waters in the Red Sea, according to LSEG and MarineTraffic ship tracking data and analysis from British maritime risk management group Vanguard.

A fifth ship — a vehicle carrier — appeared to have turned away in the Gulf of Aden on Wednesday after signaling the Saudi port of Jeddah as its next destination, according to shipping data.

The moves come as the European Union’s naval force Aspides advises ships with links to Israel, the United States or Saudi Arabia to avoid voyages through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, warning they are at a higher risk of being attacked by the Iran-aligned Houthis.

“EUNAVFOR ASPIDES recommends that merchant vessels linked to Israeli, U.S. or Saudi interests avoid transiting the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden until the threat level decreases,” reads an advisory to the shipping industry which was seen by Reuters.

Three oil tankers loaded with Saudi crude for China and India made U-turns in the Red Sea on Tuesday, heading toward the Suez Canal rather than braving the Yemeni coast at the sea’s mouth.