Houthi attacks “endanger Israel and international shipping, says German Minister Folha de Pernambuco

Yemen's Houthi rebels have attacked several ships in the Red Sea

Per AFPDEC 15, 2023 at 2:27 p.m

Houthi military spokesman Brigadier Yahya Saree makes a statement on the recent attacks on two merchant ships in the Red Sea on December 15 Mohammed Huwais/AFP

Yemen's Houthi rebels, who claimed this Friday (15) that attacks on several ships in the Red Sea threaten Israel's security and international maritime traffic, condemned the German Foreign Minister.

“Houthi attacks on civilian merchant ships in the Red Sea must stop immediately,” Annalena Baerbock said at a press conference in Berlin.

“These attacks not only endanger Israel’s security, but also threaten international shipping,” he added.

A container ship attacked by the Houthis belongs to the German shipping company HapagLloyd.

The Houthis, who control a large part of Yemen and are close to Iran, claimed this Friday that there had been another attack on two container ships belonging to the Swiss shipping company MSC.

Denmark's Maersk, one of the world's largest maritime transport companies, announced on Friday that it has suspended the passage of its ships through a strategic strait in the Red Sea, Bab el Mandeb.

In response to the war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis had warned that they would attack any ship sailing off the coast of Yemen with ties to Israel.