Thread: US helicopters sink Houthi boats in Red Sea, killing crews

How Savvy Sailors Are Dodging Houthi Attacks in the Red Sea

Global commercial shipping has been severely disrupted ever since Iran-backed Houthi rebels began launching strikes against vessels in the Red Sea—and some crews are resorting to unorthodox methods to evade their attacks.


While some ships have opted to avoid Houthi attacks entirely by rerouting around the Cape of Good Hope, many have risked going through the Red Sea, armed with a message for the Houthis: Where ships normally list their “destination,” some crews have opted to write messages meant to dissuade the Houthis.


The Houthis have been attacking vessels in the region but have said they would stop if Israel ends its bombardment of Gaza, so some crews are displaying messages meant to signal that they have no ties with Israel.

That’s the route the CL Hibiscus, a bulk carrier underway as of Thursday, is taking. “NO CONTACT ISRAEL,” CL Hibiscus wrote as its destination, according to maritime tracking data viewed by The Daily Beast. The vessel, registered in Liberia, left Saudi Arabia earlier this week.


Innova, a crude oil tanker registered in Vietnam, also listed its destination as “NO CONTACT ISRAEL,” according to data viewed by The Daily Beast.

“ARMGUARD ON,” Haian West, a container ship registered in Vietnam, had written as its destination, in an apparent attempt to signal to the Houthis the crew is armed. The ship departed from Yemen.


The Atout, a container ship registered in Liberia, likewise noted it had “ARM GUARD O/B” (onboard.) A crude oil tanker that departed Egypt early this month also listed its destination as “ARMED GUARDS ONBOARD,” according to maritime tracking data viewed by The Daily Beast this week.

Countless others have been using the tactic, while other crews are turning off their tracking entirely, Marco Forgione, Director General at The Institute of Export & International Trade, a UK trade body for exporters and importers, told The Daily Beast.


Some ships have noted in the destination “CHINESE CREW,” like the Xin Hai Tong 33, a bulk carrier, which listed its destination as “ALL CHINESE CREW.” (The Houthis have claimed that they are not going to attack ships from China and Russia.)


Taking the creative path and trying to send the Houthis messages to avoid certain ships shows just how desperate some of the tankers have become, Matt Smith, Lead Oil Analyst at Kpler, a global trade intelligence and analytics firm, told The Daily Beast.


“This is just one more measure that these crews are trying to take to avoid any type of attack on their tanker,” Smith said.


The hiring of armed guards is a tactic that has been used to deter pirates in the past, said Smith. But altering the destination to broadcast a lack of association with Israel or a country entangled in a war is an entirely new trend, Smith said.

“You’ll see that perhaps offshore Nigeria… just to kind of dissuade pirates,” Smith told The Daily Beast. “But it is unusual to get messages putting something like ‘not to do with Israel.’”


The measures come at a time when diplomacy and military operations aimed at stopping the attacks in the Red Sea have failed to insulate global commerce from the volatility of the region as Israel continues to wage war in Gaza following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks on Israel. And with the Houthi rebels’ ultimatum that they won’t stop until Israel stops its military campaign in Gaza, the region could be in deadlock for some time, analysts say.


For now, the safest bet for ships would be rerouting around the Cape for Good Hope in Africa, Forgione, the Director General at The Institute of Export & International Trade, told The Daily Beast. But that comes with additional costs, prompting some crews to take their chances in the Red Sea.


“It’s a very low probability that your tanker is going to get targeted, and there’s also the added element of security there to with the U.S. Navy etc,” Smith said. “The combination of those factors seem to make it attractive enough to continue those journeys, rather than the inconvenience and the fuel costs and the time costs to go all the way around the Cape of Good Hope.”


Long Game


Some global shipping companies have been diverting their routes to avoid the Red Sea entirely. Maersk and other shipping giants have directed their vessels to take significantly longer routes around Africa just to avoid the turmoil of the Red Sea. Chinese state-owned shipping giant COSCO has reportedly stopped shipping to Israeli ports as of early this month, according to Globes. The Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has also said it would be avoiding the Red Sea.


In addition to the dangers posed by the Houthis, insurance costs for vessels that choose to navigate the Red Sea are soaring, according to data shared with The Daily Beast from The Institute of Export & International Trade. While usually insurance costs are about 0.1-.2 percent of the value of the vessel each journey, they are right now over 1 percent—and climbing. “That’s a huge increase in the costs,” Forgione said.


There has been approximately a 70 percent decrease in cargo going through the Red Sea in recent days, while the number of ships going around the Cape of Good Hope has increased by 300 percent, according to the institute.


Maersk CEO Vincent Clerc predicted that the disruption to global shipping may continue for a few more months.


“It could also be longer because it’s so unpredictable how this situation is actually developing,” Clerc said at a Reuters event in Davos this week.


Feeling the Squeeze


As global shipping giants and oil tankers work around the stoppages and risks, the world will likely see cascading effects in the coming days, warned Forgione.


“We have very grave concerns over the potential for this to escalate,” Forgione said. “The fear of a potential escalation feeds through into the shipping costs and into insurance costs. This is a difficult situation which is getting more complicated, more complex, and difficult as time passes.”


Some companies could face financial ruin. Many small businesses that are members of the institute are already feeling the squeeze from the disruptions, Forgione told The Daily Beast.


This month, the United States and a coalition of allies have taken action against the Houthis, going after supplies and loaded missiles in Yemen that appear poised for attack in order to try to destroy the Houthis’ capability of launching attacks. So far, the United States has conducted at least six attacks since mid-January, when the Biden administration first responded.

The White House has acknowledged that at least part of the goal in striking back against the Houthis is about helping international shipping continue without incident.


“We have to be able to act in our own self defense. Not just for our ships and our sailors but for merchant ships and merchant sailors and international shipping in the Red Sea,” White House National Security Council Coordinator John Kirby told reporters in a briefing Thursday.


But the crisis does not appear to be easing despite U.S. efforts, with President Joe Biden himself seemingly unconvinced the approach is working.


“Are they stopping the Houthis? No,” Biden told reporters Thursday.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/how-sa...d-sea?ref=home

Red Sea crisis: What it takes to reroute the world'''s biggest cargo ships on a 4,000 mile detour - BBC Future

Originally Posted by OhOh

They have confirmed Russian and Chinese ships wil not be attacked.

But they have you clown.

Originally Posted by OhOh

I believe now they are also targeting US and UK, military and commercial ships now. Also


Why? Because both of them are at war with Yemeni and killing civilians.

who is at war with the yemen??

US, British forces carry out new strikes in Yemen

WASHINGTON: US and British forces carried out a fresh round of strikes on Monday (Jan 22) in Yemen, targeting a Houthi underground storage site as well as missile and surveillance capabilities used by the Iran-aligned group against Red Sea shipping, the Pentagon said.
The Houthis, who control the most populous parts of Yemen, have said their attacks are in solidarity with Palestinians as Israel strikes Gaza.


The Houthi attacks have disrupted global shipping and stoked fears of global inflation. They have also deepened concern that fallout from the Israel-Hamas war could destabilise the Middle East.
In the latest response, US and British forces carried out eight strikes, with support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada and the Netherlands, according to a joint statement signed by the six countries.
"These precision strikes are intended to disrupt and degrade the capabilities that the Houthis use to threaten global trade and the lives of innocent mariners," the joint statement said.
British Defence Minister Grant Shapps said in a statement that the strikes were carried out in self-defence.
"This action will deal another blow to their limited stockpiles and ability to threaten global trade," Shapps said.


So far, multiple rounds of strikes over the past month have failed to stop Houthi attacks against shipping.
Container vessels have been pausing or diverting from the Red Sea that leads to the Suez Canal, the fastest freight route from Asia to Europe. Many ships have been forced to take the longer route via the Cape of Good Hope instead.



US, British forces carry out new strikes in Yemen - CNA

Originally Posted by malmomike77

who is at war with the yemen??

Originally Posted by misskit

US, British forces carry out new strikes in Yemen

David Cameron said the Houthi's actions are unacceptable, therefore the UK and US will fire off some missiles to try to stop it.

The Houthis said that Israel's actions are unacceptable, therefore the Houthis will fire off some missiles to try to stop it.

Israel says that Hamas's actions are unacceptable, so Israel will fire off some missiles to try to stop it.

Hamas says Israel's actions are unacceptable, so Hamas will fire off some missiles to try to stop it.

^ Does Iran not even deserve a little mention in that? Apart from providing the missiles and training for The Houthis and Hamas, they've recently fired some missiles at Syria, Iraq and Pakistan. And, some of their "military trainers" committed suicide by missile a few days back.

^Perhaps, but the thread is mostly about a bunged up shipping lane causing problems for world trade.

Originally Posted by OhOh

Why? Because both of them are at war with Yemeni and killing civilians.

Originally Posted by malmomike77

who is at war with the yemen??

come on OhDoh, where has the US or UK declared war on Yemen? not even a Special Operation as your high heeled mate Putin likes to call his wars, or a Re-education programme like your lying jaundiced faced purple lipped Chinky master calls them.

Houthis, last i checked are not the official Government in Yemen, they are in fact an Iranian Shiite puppet organisation seeding destabilisation and have brought the Yemen to its knees over the decade since they started the war with the Sunni Govt.

Two Maersk ships have to turn around on their way into the Red Sea after explosion




Karen Nielsen




Two Maersk ships, the Maersk Detroit and the Maersk Chesapeake, flying the American flag, have turned around on their way through the Strait Bab e-Mandeb bound for the Red Sea. Maersk informs DR News.

The reason is that explosions were observed near the ship and that an American military escort accompanying the ships shot down projectiles.

Neither the crews, ships nor cargo have been injured and the ships are now being escorted back to the Gulf of Aden.

The ships carried cargo for, among others, the US Department of Defense and the US State Department. They sail for Maersk's American subsidiary Maersk Line Ltd., which has now decided to temporarily suspend sailing through the Red Sea.

Nyheder - Få Seneste Nyt fra i dag | DR

How a Ragtag Militia in Yemen Became a Nimble U.S. Foe

For years, the scrappy Iran-backed Yemeni rebels known as the Houthis did such a good job of bedeviling American partners in the Middle East that Pentagon war planners started copying some of their tactics.


Noting that the Houthis had managed to weaponize commercial radar systems that are commonly available in boating stores and make them more portable, a senior U.S. commander challenged his Marines to figure out something similar. By September 2022, Marines in the Baltic Sea were adapting Houthi-inspired mobile radar systems.

So senior Pentagon officials knew as soon as the Houthis started attacking ships in the Red Sea that they would be hard to tame.


As the Biden administration approaches its third week of airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen, the Pentagon is trying to thread an impossibly tiny needle: making a dent in the Houthis’ ability to hit commercial and Navy vessels without dragging the United States into a prolonged war.


It is a difficult task, made more so because the Houthis have perfected the tactics of irregular warfare, American military officials say. The group does not have many big weapons depots for American fighter jets to bomb — Houthi fighters are constantly on the move with missiles they launch from pickup trucks on remote beaches before hustling away.


The first barrage of American-led airstrikes nearly two weeks ago hit nearly 30 locations in Yemen, destroying around 90 percent of the targets struck, Pentagon officials said. But even with that high success rate, the Houthis retained around 75 percent of their ability to fire missiles and drones at ships transiting the Red Sea, those officials acknowledged.


Since then, the Pentagon has carried out seven more rounds of strikes. And the Houthis have continued their attacks on ships transiting the Red Sea.


“There is a level of sophistication here that you can’t ignore,” said Gen. Joseph L. Votel, who led the U.S. military’s Central Command from 2016 to 2019, as Saudi Arabia was trying to defeat the Houthis in Yemen.


So far the Pentagon strategy has been to put armed Reaper drones and other surveillance platforms in the skies over Yemen, so that U.S. warplanes and ships can hit Houthi mobile targets as they pop up.


On Monday night, the United States and Britain struck nine sites in Yemen, hitting multiple targets at each location. Unlike most of the previous strikes, which were more targets of opportunity, the nighttime strikes were planned. They hit radars as well as drone and missile sites and underground weapons storage bunkers.


This middle ground reflects the administration’s attempt to chip away at the Houthis’ ability to menace merchant ships and military vessels but not hit so hard as to kill large numbers of Houthi fighters and commanders, potentially unleashing even more mayhem into the region.


But officials say they will continue to try to hit mobile targets as analysts search for more fixed targets.


After nearly a decade of Saudi airstrikes, the Houthis are skilled at concealing what they have, putting some of their launchers and weaponry in urban areas and shooting missiles from the backs of vehicles or tractors before scooting off.


And the weapons that are destroyed are soon replaced by Iran, as a never-ending stream of dhows ferry more weaponry into Yemen, U.S. officials say.


Even a seemingly successful American commando operation on Jan. 11 that seized a small boat carrying ballistic-missile and cruise-missile components to Yemen came at a cost: the Pentagon said on Sunday that the status of two Navy SEALs reported missing during the operation had been changed to dead after an “exhaustive” 10-day search. Navy commandos, backed by helicopters and drones hovering overhead, had boarded the small boat and seized propulsion and guidance systems, warheads and other items.


The Houthis are believed to have had underground assembly and manufacturing sites even before the civil war began in Yemen in 2014. The militia seized the country’s army arsenal when it took over Sana, the capital, a decade ago. Since then, it has amassed a diverse and increasingly lethal arsenal of cruise and ballistic missiles and one-way attack drones, most supplied by Iran, military analysts said.


“It’s mind-blowing, the diversity of their arsenal,” said Fabian Hinz, an expert on missiles, drones and the Middle East at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London.


Hezbollah, the Iran-backed Lebanese militia, has helped as well. Top Houthi commanders studied under Hezbollah trainers in Lebanon on, first and foremost, how to be adaptable, said Hisham Maqdashi, a defense adviser with the internationally recognized Yemeni government.


Hezbollah “trained them to be able to adapt to the changes of the war in Yemen,” Mr. Maqdashi said in an interview. “They did not train them on the specifics, but on how to be very dynamic.”


That leaves the United States and its coalition partners with only three viable options, given the parameters of President Biden’s strategic aims in Yemen, military analysts say. They could commandeer the weapons coming by sea from Iran; find the missiles, which requires extensive intelligence; or attack the launch sites.


The third option is the hardest. Houthi militants are believed to hide mobile missile launchers in a range of locations, anywhere from inside culverts to beneath highway overpasses. They are easily moved for hasty launches.


The Houthi mobile maneuvers worked so well against Saudi Arabia that the Marines began an experimental effort to copy them. They developed a mobile radar, essentially a Simrad Halo24 radar — you can get one for about $3,000 at Bass Pro Shops — that can be put on any fishing boat. It takes five minutes to set up. The Marines, like the Houthis, have been looking into how to use the radars to send data back on what’s going on at sea.


Lt. Gen. Frank Donovan, now the vice commander of United States Special Operations Command, noticed what the Houthis were doing with the radar back when he was leading a Fifth Fleet amphibious task force operating in the southern Red Sea. Trying to figure out how the Houthis were targeting ships, General Donovan soon realized the Houthis were mounting off-the-shelf radars on vehicles on the shore and moving them around.


He challenged his Second Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion to develop a similar system.

How a Ragtag Militia in Yemen Became a Nimble U.S. Foe – DNyuz

Originally Posted by misskit

So senior Pentagon officials knew as soon as the Houthis started attacking ships in the Red Sea that they would be hard to tame.

The only way to tame the Houthis and the other Iranian proxies is to hit Iran so hard that they decide not in their best interests to support them. Otherwise, Iran will continue.

European, US retailers absorb Red Sea shock, wary of hiking prices

Carrying more stock, switching to suppliers nearer to consumers and reducing dependence on China are tactics European and U.S. retailers used to build more resilient supply chains following disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic.


Faced now with transport delays of two weeks or more as cargo ships are rerouted from the Red Sea, they have limited financial wiggle room to splurge on workarounds like air freight that would get products into stores faster.


A surge in inflation since the pandemic has also caused shoppers around the world to cut back on spending, putting retailers' focus squarely back on reducing their costs, industry experts said. Many are simply opting to take the hit from higher transport costs rather than risk hiking prices.

The rapid growth of China-founded e-commerce companies like Shein and Temu that deliver huge amounts of low-priced clothes and accessories from China to Europe and the United States by air has also increased the pressure on competing retailers to make their supply chains as lean as possible.


"If supply chain resilience means paying more for your goods, then that isn't going to wash," said Matt Clark, who leads the EMEA retail practice at consultancy AlixPartners in London.


Retailers' "need to drive profitability is trumping the intent around supply chain resilience", he added.


Some fashion retailers are working around the Red Sea by using sea-air freight, which involves shipping products to Dubai and then flying them from there, but they are being highly selective.


Air freighting goods is around 10 to 12 times more expensive than shipping by sea, according to Sunandan Ray, CEO of U.S.-based Unique Logistics. For budget fashion retailer Primark, air freight would not be economical, the finance director at parent company Associated British Foods ABF.L said on Tuesday.


Clothing and sportswear retailers also want to avoid overstocking, having only just recovered from a glut that forced them to sell products at a discount.


Sports equipment and apparel wholesaler Intersport Deutschland has stocked up over the past weeks to manage the expected two-week delays caused by ships rerouting from the Red Sea, Chief Financial Officer Thomas Storck said in an interview.


But overall, the company's inventory level is significantly lower than a year ago, he said. That's a result of warehouse investments that have improved its ability to get products to more than 1,400 independent Intersport stores in Germany faster.


Intersport Deutschland plans to absorb the higher transport costs rather than passing them on to store owners or consumers through higher prices.


Budget furniture manufacturer Inter IKEA also said that for now, its pricing planning remains unchanged despite the Red Sea disruption.


"We remain committed to our work to strengthen the affordability of IKEA products," the company said in a statement.


FOCUS ON 'NEARSHORING'


One way retailers are trying to account for the cost increase and avoid running out of stock is by doing less discounting than is usual for this time of year.


In the United States, retailers' discounts have averaged 39% so far in January, down from 41% a year ago according to data from LSEG and Centric Market Intelligence.


The disruptions to shipments from Asia to Europe and the United States may spur more retailers to "nearshore" or source more from suppliers closer to their markets, but here too, cost is a key consideration.


Swedish fashion retailer H&M said it is "increasing the share of nearshoring to be closer to the customer", without giving a specific target.


Intersport Deutschland also aims to "nearshore", said Storck, but "you cannot do this overnight because you also have to reflect the cost, and what the consumer is willing to pay."


For European retailers, buying from factories in the region is typically more costly than sourcing from China and other Asian countries, making it difficult to do at scale while remaining competitive.


"China is still the biggest origin country for fashion apparel, and the quality-price ratio is so good that even if some companies want to cut back on the share that China has in their overall production, it's almost impossible because it is so well positioned," said Laurens Schoningh, global head of fashion logistics at Hellmann Worldwide Logistics.


Swetha Ramachandran, who manages a consumer brands portfolio at Artemis Fund Managers, said she would not welcome companies "nearshoring" if that led to higher costs.


"We obviously as investors would not want to see them sacrifice long-term profits," said Ramachandran, whose fund invests in companies including Inditex, Nike, and Adidas.


"There is a way for companies to diversify their supply chains without necessarily sacrificing their profit margins, by offsetting the cost of nearshoring through increased efficiencies."

European, US retailers absorb Red Sea shock, wary of hiking prices | Taiwan News | 2024-01-24 19:30:00

Originally Posted by misskit

How a Ragtag Militia in Yemen Became a Nimble U.S. Foe – DNyuz

Interesting, but....news ?

Originally Posted by helge

Interesting, but....news ?

I read it. Relevant and interesting.

Originally Posted by OhOh

Start another war, is that your answer?

Fight fire with fire as they say.

Respond to an attack by using a similar method as one's attacker." Shakespeare used this phrase to mean "employ more extreme methods than we would normally do" in King John in 1595.

Originally Posted by DrWilly

Originally Posted by helge
Interesting, but....news ?

I read it. Relevant and interesting.

It was tongue in cheek

Misskit runs a pretty strict regime regarding only "news" in the news threads.

Relevant and interesting, sure.

News ? Hmm

Nevermind; just a dig, in case her dog didn't have a Cat Cigar today

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin’s Regular Press Conference on January 24, 2024

2024-01-24 19:10

One question and answer:

"Reuters:

The Financial Times reported that the United States has asked China to urge Tehran to rein in the Iranian-aligned Houthis attacking commercial ships in the Red Sea, but has seen little sign of help from Beijing. This is according to US officials. The report said the US has repeatedly raised the matter with top Chinese officials in the past three months. Could we confirm with the Ministry if these discussions with the US took place? Has China been in touch with Iran or the Houthis about the Red Sea attacks? If so, what was discussed or any outcomes that China is hoping for?

Wang Wenbin:

We are deeply concerned over the recent rapid escalation of tensions in the Red Sea. The Red Sea is an important international trade route for goods and energy. China has been in close communication with various parties and worked actively to alleviate the tension in the Red Sea. China calls for a stop of causing disturbance to civilian ships, and urges relevant parties to avoid adding fuel to the fire in the Red Sea and jointly safeguard the safety of the Red Sea shipping route in accordance with the law.

It must be stressed that the tension in the Red Sea is a manifestation of the spillover of the Gaza conflict. The priority now is to end the fighting in Gaza as soon as possible to avoid further escalation and prevent the situation from getting out of control.

In the meanwhile, we believe that the Security Council has never authorized the use of force by any country on Yemen and the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Yemen and other coastal countries of the Red Sea need to be earnestly respected.

China stands ready to work with all parties to help cool down the situation and safeguard the security and stability of the Red Sea region."

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin’s Regular Press Conference on January 24, 2024

China presses Iran to rein in Houthi attacks in Red Sea

Chinese officials have asked their Iranian counterparts to help rein in attacks on ships in the Red Sea by the Iran-backed Houthis, or risk harming business relations with Beijing, four Iranian sources and a diplomat familiar with the matter said.


The discussions about the attacks and trade between China and Iran took place at several recent meetings in Beijing and Tehran, the Iranian sources said, declining to provide details about when they took place or who attended.


"Basically, China says: 'If our interests are harmed in any way, it will impact our business with Tehran. So tell the Houthis to show restraint'," said one Iranian official briefed on the talks, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity.

The attacks, which the Houthis say are in support of Palestinians in Gaza, have raised the cost of shipping and insurance by disrupting a key trade route between Asia and Europe used widely by ships from China.


The Chinese officials, however, did not make any specific comments or threats about how Beijing's trading relationship with Iran could be affected if its interests were damaged by Houthi attacks, the four Iranian sources said.


While China has been Iran's biggest trading partner for the past decade, their trade relationship is lopsided.


Chinese oil refiners, for example, bought over 90% of Iran's crude exports last year, according to tanker tracking data from trade analytics firm Kpler, as U.S. sanctions kept many other customers away and Chinese firms profited from heavy discounts.


Iranian oil, though, only accounts for 10% of China's crude imports and Beijing has an array of suppliers that could plug shortfalls from elsewhere.


The Iranian sources said Beijing had made it clear it would be very disappointed with Tehran if any vessels linked to China were hit, or the country's interests were affected in any way.


But while China was important to Iran, Tehran also had proxies in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and Iraq, besides the Houthis in Yemen, and its regional alliances and priorities played a major role in its decision making, one of the Iranian insiders said.


Asked for comment about meetings with Iran to discuss the Red Sea attacks, China's ministry of foreign affairs said: "China is a sincere friend of the countries of the Middle East and is committed to promoting regional security and stability and seeking common development and prosperity."


"We firmly support Middle Eastern countries in strengthening their strategic independence and uniting and collaborating to resolve regional security issues," it told Reuters.


Iran's foreign ministry was not immediately available to comment.


AXIS OF RESISTANCE


Military strikes by U.S. and British forces on Houthi targets in Yemen this month have failed to stop attacks on shipping by the group, which controls a large chunk of Yemen including the capital Sanaa and much of the country's Red Sea coast by the Bab al-Mandab strait.


The Houthis, who first emerged in the 1980s as an armed group in opposition to Saudi Arabia's Sunni religious influence in Yemen, are armed, funded and trained by Iran and are part of its anti-West, anti-Israel "Axis of Resistance".


A senior U.S. official said Washington had asked China to use its leverage with Iran to persuade it to restrain the Houthis, including in conversations Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan had this month with senior Chinese Communist Party official Liu Jianchao.


A senior Iranian official said while Chinese officials discussed their concerns thoroughly in the meetings, they never mentioned any requests from Washington.


On Jan. 14, China's foreign minister Wang Yi called for an end to attacks on civilian ships in the Red Sea - without naming the Houthis or mentioning Iran - and the maintenance of supply chains and the international trade order.


Victor Gao, chair professor at China's Soochow University, said China, as the world's biggest trading nation, was disproportionately affected by the shipping disruption and restoring stability in the Red Sea was a priority.


But Gao, a former Chinese diplomat and an adviser to oil giant Saudi Aramco, said Beijing would view Israel's treatment of the Palestinians as the root cause of the Red Sea crisis and would not want to publicly ascribe blame to the Houthis.


A U.S. State Department spokesperson declined to comment when asked about bilateral Iran-China discussions on the issue.


A diplomat familiar with the matter said China had been talking to Iran about the issue but it was unclear how seriously Tehran was taking Beijing's advice.


Two officials in the Yemeni government, an enemy of the Houthis, said they were aware that several countries, including China, had sought to influence Iran to rein the Houthis in.


Analysts Gregory Brew of Eurasia Group and Ali Vaez of the International Crisis Group said China had potential leverage over Iran because of its oil purchases and because Iran was hoping to attract more Chinese direct investment in future.


However, both said China had so far been reluctant to use its leverage, for several reasons.


"China prefers to free-ride on the U.S. safeguarding freedom of navigation in the Red Sea by bloodying the Houthis' nose," said Vaez, adding that Beijing was also aware that Iran did not have total control over its Yemeni allies.


INFLUENCE NOT ABSOLUTE


Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdulsalam said on Thursday that Iran to date had not conveyed any message from China about scaling back attacks.


"They will not inform us of such a request, especially since Iran's stated position is to support Yemen. It condemned the American-British strikes on Yemen, and considered Yemen's position honourable and responsible," he said.


The four Iranian sources said it was unclear whether Iran would take any action following the discussions with Beijing.


The stakes are high for Iran as China is one of the few powers capable of providing the billions of dollars of investment Tehran needs to maintain the capacity of its oil sector and keep its economy afloat.


China's influence was evident in 2023 when it facilitated an agreement between Iran and regional rival Saudi Arabia to end years of hostilities.


Yet while there are robust economic ties between China and Iran, Beijing's influence on Tehran's geopolitical decisions was not absolute, one of the Iranian insiders said.


Some within Iran's ruling establishment have questioned the value of the partnership with Beijing, pointing to relatively low non-oil trade and investment volumes since China and Iran signed a 25-year cooperation agreement in 2021.


Iranian state media says Chinese firms have only invested $185 million since then. State media also said last year that Iranian non-oil exports to China fell 68% in the first five months of 2023 while Iran's imports from China rose 40%.


By contrast, Chinese companies committed last year to invest billions in Saudi Arabia after the countries signed a comprehensive strategic partnership in December 2022.


Two of the Iranian insiders said while China could not be ignored, Tehran had other priorities to consider and its decisions were shaped by a complex interplay of factors.


"Regional alliances and priorities as well as ideological considerations contribute significantly to Tehran's decisions," one of the people said.


The second person said Iran's rulers had to adopt a nuanced strategy when it came to the Gaza war, as well as the Houthi attacks, and that Tehran would not abandon its allies.


Iran's role as leader of its "Axis of Resistance" - which includes the Houthis, Lebanon's Hezbollah, Hamas and militias in Iraq and Syria - had to be balanced against avoiding getting sucked into a regional war over Gaza, the Iranian sources said.


Tehran's messaging to - and about - the Houthis required a measure of deniability about the extent of its control over them - but also an ability to claim some credit for their anti-Israel actions, one of the people said.

China presses Iran to rein in Houthi attacks in Red Sea | Taiwan News | 2024-01-26 0935

Yemen’s Houthis claim attack on oil tanker ‘on fire’ in Gulf of Aden

A vessel is on fire having been attacked off the coast of Yemen in a missile strike claimed by the Houthis as the Islamist group’s threats in the key shipping route continue despite UK and US strikes.


Multinational firm Trafigura, which has offices in London, told The Independent an oil tanker operated on its behalf, the Marlin Luanda, was struck by a missile in the Red Sea on Friday, with firefighting equipment currently in use to battle the flames and military ships on their way to assist.


Yemen’s Houthis claimed their naval forces carried out an operation in the Gulf of Aden targeting a vessel, which it described as a British oil tanker. They used “a number of appropriate naval missiles, the strike was direct,” the Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said in a statement.

The targeted vessel was originally reported to be British. Shipping data suggests it sails under the flag of the Marshall Islands.

UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported an incident 60 nautical miles south east of Aden, saying authorities have been informed and are responding.


British maritime security firm Ambrey said the crew have been reported safe.


In a statement, Trafigura said: “Firefighting equipment on board is being deployed to suppress and control the fire caused in one cargo tank on the starboard side. The safety of the crew is our foremost priority. We remain in contact with the vessel and are monitoring the situation carefully. Military ships in the region are underway to provide assistance.”

Following the incident, UKMTO, which acts as a link between the Royal Navy and commercial shipping, warned other vessels to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity.


Earlier on Friday, UKMTO reported an incident in which two missiles exploded in waters near a ship off the port of Aden and another one 60 nautical miles off Yemen’s Hodeidah port. The US military shot down an anti-ship ballistic missile from a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen on Friday, it said in a statement, adding there were no injuries or damage from the interception. It was unclear if one of those vessels was the Marlin Luanda.


The Houthis have repeatedly launched attacks on ships in the Red Sea since November over Israel's war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.


But they have frequently targeted vessels with tenuous or no clear links to Israel, endangering shipping on a key route for global trade.

The Houthi campaign has been very disruptive to international shipping, causing some companies to suspend transits through the Red Sea and instead take the much longer, costlier journey around Africa.




US and British warplanes, ships and submarines have launched dozens of air strikes across Yemen against Houthi forces in retaliation.


The UK and US are also targeting key figures in the Iran-backed militant group with sanctions.


A second series of UK and US air strikes, carried out at the start of the week, appears to have done little to deter Houthi action.

Earlier on Friday, a spokeswoman for the Prime Minister said: "We continue to call on [the Houthis] to step back from such action. We're clear that this is illegal and unacceptable."

Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron is currently finishing a trip to the Middle East, in a diplomatic bid to reduce tensions as the Israeli bombardment of Gaza continues.


Yemen’s Houthis claim attack on oil tanker ‘on fire’ in Gulf of Aden | The Independent

Indian Navy douses fire at British oil tanker after US strikes Houthi-linked missile

An anti-ship missile was struck by the United States' forces in Houthi-held Yemen which they claimed was prepared to fire early on Saturday (Jan 27). The missile was struck hours after a British tanker in the Gulf of Aden was struck by the Iran-backed rebels with a similar munition triggering a fire in the oil tanker, which was later doused by the Indian Navy.


Joint strikes have been launched by the US and British forces which are aimed at reducing the ability of Houthis to target vessels that are moving in the key Red Sea trade route. The rebels have claimed to be in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where Israel and Hamas have been engaged in the war.


A series of unilateral air raids have been carried out by Washington, however, the Houthis have vowed to continue carrying out the attacks.

The US military's Central Command (CENTCOM) claimed to have carried out another strike on Saturday morning (Jan 27) on a Houthi "anti-ship missile aimed into the Red Sea and which was prepared to launch".


"Forces subsequently struck and destroyed the missile in self-defence," CENTCOM said, in a statement shared on social media platform X.


Houthis' military spokesman Yahya Saree had earlier said that the British oil tanker, named Marlin Luanda, was struck by missiles which were launched by Yemeni naval forces, said the Houthis' military spokesman, Yahya Saree. "The strike was direct, and resulted (in) the burning of the vessel," he said.


Later, CENTCOM, confirming the strike, said, "The ship issued a distress call and reported damage. USS Carney (DDG 64) and other coalition ships have responded and are rendering assistance. No injuries have been reported at this time."

Oil tanker on fire in Gulf of Aden


The Houthis, on Friday (Jan 26), fired an anti-ship ballistic missile towards the Carney in the Gulf of Aden from Yemen, said CENTCOM.


"The missile was successfully shot down by USS Carney. There were no injuries or damage reported," it said.


Earlier, risk monitor Ambrey said that a Panama-flagged oil tanker "reported seeing two blasts" in the Gulf of Aden, which was corroborated by the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) of the British Navy. However, no damage was reported on the oil tanker.

The security firm said that the missiles blasted nearly a mile from the India-affiliated oil tanker and 200-300 metres (650-1,000 feet), which was above the waterline. UKMTO said that the missiles were detonated in the water.


In the month of November, the Houthis started targeting Red Sea shipping, stating that they were striking Israeli-linked vessels to express their solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.


Indian Navy responds to distress call by vessel in Gulf of Aden


Indian Navy's guided-missile destroyer responded to an SOS call issued by a merchant ship, Marlin Launda, after it was struck by a missile and caught fire in the Gulf of Aden, said the Indian Navy in a statement on Saturday (Jan 27).


There were 22 Indians and a Bangladeshi crew on board. On the basis of the request from MV Merlin Luanda, INS Visakhapatnam sent the Ship's NBCD team along with firefighting equipment to provide assistance to the crew in its firefighting efforts, said the Indian Navy.


"Indian Navy remains steadfast and committed to safeguarding merchant vessels and ensuring safety of life at sea," said the Indian Navy, in the statement.

After six hours of battling the fire along with the crew of MV Marlin Luanda, the Indian Naval firefighting team successfully brought the fire under control. The team is currently monitoring the situation to rule out any possibility of re-ignition.







Israel-Hamas war: Indian Navy douses fire at British oil tanker after US strikes Houthi-linked missile - World News

Oopsie. MV Marlin Luanda was carrying Russian products.


Fire doused on oil tanker attacked by Houthi rebels


The crew aboard a Marshall Islands-flagged tanker hit by a missile launched by Yemen’s Houthi rebels extinguished an hour-long fire onboard the stricken vessel Saturday sparked by the strike, authorities said.

The attack on the Marlin Luanda further complicated the Red Sea crisis caused by the Iranian-backed rebels’ attacks over Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The tanker carried Russian-produced naphtha, a flammable oil, drawing Moscow further into a conflict that so far it had blamed on the U.S.

MORE https://www.msn.com/en-in/news/world...ls/ar-BB1hmyN5