Yemeni Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi claimed on Thursday that attacks on ships would become more frequent in order to prevent Israeli-linked vessels from passing through the Indian Ocean towards the Cape of Good Hope.
Our main battle is to prevent ships linked to the Israeli enemy from passing through not only the Arabian Sea, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, but also the Indian Ocean towards the Cape of Good Hope. This is a major step and we have begun to implement our operations related to it.
The Houthis have been attacking ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden in what they say is a campaign to support Palestinians suffering from the Israeli-Hamas war in Gaza. Al-Houthi reported that some 34 members of its group had been killed since 7 October.
Months of Houthi attacks in the Red Sea have disrupted global shipping, forcing companies to reroute to longer and more expensive voyages around southern Africa. The attacks have also fueled fears that the war between Israel and Hamas could spread and affect the entire Middle East.
The Gaza war has spread across other parts of the Middle East. In addition to Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, the Iranian-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah has been exchanging fire with Israel along the Israel-Lebanon border, while Iraqi militias have been targeting US bases in the region.
The US and the UK have joined forces to strike the Houthis in Yemen as part of securing commercial vessels and deterring the group’s efforts to destabilise the regional security.
