Houthi piracy tampers with security of navigation in Red Sea

In a desperate attempt to show strength in light of the successive losses and blows the Houthis received at the hands of the Arab Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen and the Yemeni National Army, the militia hijacked a cargo ship loaded with medical equipment off the coast of Hodeidah on the Red Sea.

The Arab coalition forces announced in a statement that the militia had kidnapped the cargo ship Rawabi that was carrying equipment belonging to a Saudi field hospital on the island of Socotra.

In a continuation of the Houthi piracy, the group's elements attacked another ship near the port of Ras Issa, which is under the control of the Houthis.

On Sunday, January 2, the British Navy announced that it had received reports of an attack on a ship near the Yemeni port of Ras Issa on the Red Sea, stressing that it was conducting investigations to find out the details of this terrorist attack, and also calling on British sailors to be very careful in this area.

The Houthi militia is resorting to piracy operations in response to the attacks it is exposed to on the various fighting fronts and the heavy losses it has received at the hands of the Arab coalition forces.

Houthi danger

Yemeni political analyst Mahmoud al-Taher said that what the Houthi elements carried out was a piracy operation of a cargo ship carrying medical equipment, and this revealed by pictures broadcast by the Houthis themselves showing that it was carrying a field hospital, ambulances and water tanks. This confirms the error of the agreement with the militia, and therefore the United Nations bears the responsibility for the Houthis remaining in the port of Hodeidah, as it did not to obligate them to implement the provisions of the Stockholm Agreement.

Taher pointed out in an exclusive statement to the Reference that the Houthis have become a great danger to the international shipping lane, confirming Yemeni and Arab coalition warnings about the danger of the militia, which requires action to eliminate it in order to secure the international shipping lane and end the war in Yemen by military action.

He noted that the Houthis' violations will continue and will increase during the coming period with the aim of putting pressure on the Arab coalition, adding that new terrorist operations may be committed in the Red Sea and will not stop until the international community unites on the importance of ending the war after the United Nations failed to force the Houthis to peace.