Saudi Arabia said seeking China’s help in solving Houthi crisis in Red Sea
Iran-backed Yemen rebels claim kingdom’s defense minister, heading to China for strategic talks, told diplomats that Riyadh is prepared to make concessions to the terror group
Saudi Arabia is exploring the possibility of requesting China’s mediation to solve the ongoing crisis in the Red Sea, as the Houthis continue their attacks against transiting commercial shipping.
Saudi Defense Minister Khaled bin Salman, who headed to China on Tuesday to discuss the strategic defense partnership between Beijing and Riyadh, told Chinese diplomats that Riyadh is ready to make concessions to the Yemenite group in exchange for a halt to attacks on ships heading to and departing from Saudi ports, according to Houthi sources quoted by the Lebanese Al-Akhbar newspaper Thursday.
The Houthi terror group is backed by Saudi arch-foe Iran, even though last year China brokered a deal for the two regional heavyweight rivals to reestablish diplomatic ties, including reopening their embassies after a seven-year rupture in relations.
The latest development came as a ship traveling through the Red Sea reported being hit in an attack likely carried out by Houthis, authorities said, the latest in the campaign targeting shipping over the Israel-Hamas war.
The ship issued a radio call off the coast of the rebel-held port city of Hodeida saying it had been struck, the private security firm Ambrey first reported. A warship in the area was responding to the attack, Ambrey said.
It wasn’t clear if anyone was hurt or if the ship was damaged in the assault. The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center later also reported the attack, saying military authorities in the area were investigating.
The Houthis did not immediately claim responsibility for the attack. It can sometimes take hours or even days for them to acknowledge assaults.
The rebels have targeted more than 60 vessels by firing missiles and drones, killing a total of four sailors. They seized one vessel and sank two since November. A US-led airstrike campaign has targeted the Houthis since January, with a series of strikes on May 30 killing at least 16 people and wounding 42 others, the rebels say.
The Houthis maintain that their attacks target ships linked to Israel or its allies the United States and Britain, in support of the Palestinians amid the Israel-Hamas-war, which began with a devastating Hamas attack on Israel on October 7. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the Israel-Hamas war — including some bound for Iran.
Late Tuesday, Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree said the group was responsible for an attack Monday on the Liberian-flagged, Greek-managed container ship MSC Sarah V. On Wednesday, the Houthis claimed they used a new hypersonic ballistic missile in the assault, which targeted a ship farther away than nearly all of the previous assaults they’ve launched in the Gulf of Aden.
The US military’s Central Command also said it destroyed a Houthi radar site. Another attack Wednesday in the Gulf of Aden was suspected to have been carried out by the Houthis, though they have yet to claim it.
The Saudi proposal comes after the Pentagon announced last week it withdrew the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier from the area, after it served nearly eight months in the region, a deployment that included efforts to thwart Houthi attacks on commercial shipping. The USS Theodore Roosevelt is currently on its way from the Pacific to replace it.
Last week, Greece sent its frigate Psara to join Operation Aspides, the EU’s mission in the Red Sea. A Houthi military source told Al-Akhbar that its arrival constitutes a “provocation” to Yemen and a confirmation of the West’s intention to militarize the Red Sea, and will prompt a Houthi reaction.
The United States in December announced a maritime security initiative to protect Red Sea shipping from Houthi attacks, which have forced commercial vessels to divert from the route that normally carries 12 percent of global trade.
Since January the United States and Britain have also launched repeated strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen in response to the ship attacks.