The US Secretary of Defense announced Operation Prosperity Guardian on Monday, December 18, in response to increasing attacks in recent days on ships perceived by Yemeni rebels to be “linked to Israel.”
The reaction will undoubtedly be huge. Amid repeated attacks by the Houthis on merchant vessels in the Red Sea, the United States announced on Monday evening, December 18, the formation of a ten-country coalition to fight the Yemeni rebels. “The recent escalation of reckless Houthi attacks from Yemen threatens the free flow of trade, endangers the lives of innocent sailors, and violates international law,” said U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, announcing “the establishment of Operation Prosperity Guardian.”
In addition to the United States, this coalition will consist of France – whose diplomatic chief Catherine Colonna estimated on Sunday that the Houthi attacks “cannot go unanswered” – the United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and the Seychelles. This “multinational security initiative” will operate “under the auspices of the Combined Maritime Forces.” [CMF, un partenariat maritime international à la direction tournante qui a pour mission d’assurer la sécurité en haute mer, ndlr] and under the leadership of Combined Task Force 153. It was established in April 2022 to ensure security in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. She is one of five forces managed by the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF).
Shipowners are leaving the area
During a visit to Israel on Monday, Lloyd Austin previously called on Iran to end its “support” for Houthi operations against merchant shipping. The Jewish state is not among the states the Pentagon chief mentioned as part of the Red Sea coalition, while the Houthis have claimed to attack ships they say are “linked to Israel.”
With attacks by Yemeni rebels increasing in recent days, the sea transport giants are abandoning passage through the strategic Bab al-Mandeb strait, which separates the Arabian Peninsula from Africa and through which 40% of world trade passes. Following the example of many shipping companies, British hydrocarbon giant BP and Taiwanese maritime transport giant Evergreen announced on Monday that they would suspend all transit in the Red Sea.
Late last week, Denmark's Maersk, Germany's Hapag-Lloyd, France's CMA CGM and Italian-Swiss MSC announced that their ships would no longer enter the zone “until further notice.”
“Highway of the Sea”
In response to the war between the Jewish state and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis, who control large parts of Yemen, have warned that they will attack ships sailing off the country's coast if they have ties to Israel . Several missiles and drones were fired from warships patrolling the area.
The Red Sea is a “sea highway” that connects the Mediterranean with the Indian Ocean and thus Europe with Asia. Around 20,000 ships pass through the Suez Canal every year, the entry and exit point for ships traveling through the Red Sea.