Conflict in the Middle East: Twelve states call on Houthis to stop attacks on ships

class=”sc-cffd1e67-0 fmXrkB”>

“We demand an immediate end to these illegal attacks and the release of the illegally detained ships and crews,” said the statement released by the White House in Washington on Wednesday.

It warned the Houthis that they “will bear responsibility for the consequences if they continue to threaten lives, the global economy and the free flow of trade in the region’s vital waterways.” US President Joe Biden is considering direct attacks by US forces on the Houthis if they continue shelling cargo ships, according to media reports.

Bahrain also signed

The request to the rebel group was also signed by Australia, Great Britain, Japan and Canada, among others. Bahrain was the only Arab state to sign the declaration. The small Gulf state has strained relations with Iran, which backs Houthi rebels in Yemen’s civil war.

Since the war between Israel and the Islamist-Palestinian organization Hamas began in early October, the Houthi militia has repeatedly attacked ships. The Houthis said they were attacking ships linked to Israel in solidarity with the Palestinians.

Shipping companies avoid the Red Sea

The Red Sea is a central trade route through which up to twelve percent of world trade passes. Yemen is located on the Strait of Bab-al-Mandeb between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. Due to the wave of Houthi attacks on container ships, several shipping companies are now avoiding sailing through the strait.

To protect the merchant marine, the United States announced in mid-December that it would form an international military coalition. According to the Pentagon, more than twenty countries now belong to this group.

(SDA)

Source: Blick