Houthis to step up Red Sea strikes, use ‘submarine weapons’, leader says
- The Iran-backed militants also sent shippers and insurers formal notice of a ‘ban’ on vessels linked to Israel, the US and the UK from sailing in the area
- The group’s leader said the attacks would mirror escalations of Israel’s military operations in the Gaza Strip
Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis will escalate their attacks on ships in the Red Sea and other waters and have introduced “submarine weapons”, in continued solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza war, the group’s leader said on Thursday.
Houthi militants have launched repeated drone and missile strikes in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandab Strait and Gulf of Aden since November in support of Palestinians, as the Israel-Gaza war continues and the Palestinian death toll reaches almost 30,000.
“Operations in the Red and Arabian Seas, Bab al-Mandab Strait, and the Gulf of Aden are continuing, escalating, and effective,” Abdul Malik al-Houthi added in a televised speech. He gave no details of the submarine weapons.
The group’s strikes are disrupting a route that accounts for about 12 per cent of global maritime traffic, and forcing firms to take a longer, more expensive route around Africa.
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The leader’s speech came the same day the Houthis sent shippers and insurers formal notice of what they termed a ban on vessels linked to Israel, the US and Britain from sailing in surrounding seas, seeking to reinforce their military campaign.
