(Dubai) Yemeni Houthi rebels claimed on Wednesday to have carried out an “operation” against a ship from the French carrier CMA CGM in the Red Sea, in solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
The US military had indicated earlier that two missiles were fired Tuesday evening by the Houthis in an area where several merchant ships were located, near the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait, “without causing any damage”.
“The naval forces of the Yemeni armed forces carried out an operation targeting the CMA CGM TAGE ship which was heading towards the ports of occupied Palestine,” the rebels said in a statement published on X.
The rebels supported by Iran, like Palestinian Hamas, are increasing drone and missile attacks off the Yemeni coast, claiming to act in solidarity with Gaza, bombed and besieged by Israel after the attacks perpetrated by the Palestinian movement Hamas on October 7.
They warned they would target ships with ties to Israel traveling in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which separates the Arabian Peninsula from Africa.
Tuesday evening’s attack was the 24e of its kind since mid-November, according to the US military Command in the Middle East (Centcom).
The increase in attacks in this strategic area, which sees 12% of global maritime trade, has pushed some shipowners to avoid the Red Sea and caused transport costs to soar.
The French CMA CGM announced the almost doubling of its freight rates from January 15 for trade between Asia and the Mediterranean, while the Italian-Swiss world leader, MSC, increased its rates on January 1.er January.
The issue of Houthi attacks should be addressed on Wednesday during a meeting of the UN Security Council on peacekeeping, according to French diplomacy.
Several missiles and drones have been shot down by American, French and British warships patrolling the area, while the United States has set up a multinational maritime protection force in the Red Sea.
On Sunday, the American army announced that it had sunk three Houthi ships, after attacks on a container ship of the Danish carrier Maersk. Ten rebels were killed in this strike, according to a spokesperson for the movement.