Page 13 - Yemen

Red Sea route accounts for 50% country's exports, 30% of imports: Report

The impact of the ongoing crisis around the Red Sea shipping route, which accounts for 50 per cent of the country's exports and 30 per cent of imports last fiscal, will vary depending on the industry, according to a report. The crisis in the Red Sea shipping route began after Yemen-based Houthi rebels launched frequent attacks on commercial shipping vessels plying through the route in November as a fallout of the Israeli-Palestinian war, which started in early October 2023. Currently, the US and British forces are also engaged in counter-attacks on the militants. Domestic companies use the Red Sea route through the Suez Canal to trade with Europe, North America, North Africa and part of the Middle East. Last fiscal, these regions accounted for 50 per cent of the country's exports worth Rs 18 lakh crore and 30 per cent of imports worth Rs 17 lakh crore. The country's overall merchandise trade was Rs 94 lakh crore last fiscal, with 68 per cent in value and 95 per cent in volume being

Lawmakers warn Biden to seek authorization before strikes on Houthi rebels

A bipartisan group of lawmakers is raising concerns over a series of recent U.S. military strikes against Yemen Houthi rebels, urging the Biden administration to get congressional authorization before taking further military action in the Middle East. In a letter to President Joe Biden on Friday, a coalition of nearly 30 House members expressed their strong opposition to what they described as unauthorized American strikes that have further escalated the biggest confrontation at sea the U.S. Navy has seen in the Middle East in a decade. As representatives of the American people, Congress must engage in robust debate before American servicemembers are put in harm's way and before more U.S. taxpayer dollars are spent on yet another war in the Middle East, the letter, led by Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, stated. No President, regardless of political party, has the constitutional authority to bypass Congress on matters of war. The lawmakers, who hail from t

Houthi authorities order US, British nationals to leave Yemen in one month

The letter also ordered foreign organisations to not hire American and British citizens for Yemen's operations

Shipments affected by Houthi assaults as vessel attacked off Yemen: Qatar

Qatar, one of the world's top exporters of liquified natural gas, warned Wednesday that its deliveries had been affected by ongoing attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels on shipping over Israel's war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The statement by QatarEnergy came as an explosion struck near a ship Wednesday travelling through a crucial strait near Yemen, though no damage or injuries were reported, the British military said. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but suspicion immediately fell on the Houthis. Ships carrying liquified natural gas from Qatar had been delayed previously before heading through the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea. That's where the Houthi attacks have snarled shipping in a key route for Asia and the Middle East to ship cargo and energy to Europe. Qatar, which has served as a key mediator between Hamas and Israel, has yet to see any of its ships attacked, however. A statement from its state-owned Qatar Energy producer said that its production ...

Here's how Yemen's Houthi attacks are hurting the global supply chain

Repeated rounds of retaliatory strikes by the US and its allies, as well as a multinational naval operation to patrol the waters, haven't stopped the assaults by the Houthi militants

US, British militaries team up again to bomb sites in Yemen used by Houthis

The US and British militaries bombed multiple sites used by the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen on Monday, the second time the two allies have conducted coordinated retaliatory strikes on an array of the rebels' missile-launching capabilities, several US officials said. According to officials, the US and UK used warship- and submarine-launched Tomahawk missiles and fighter jets to take out Houthi missile storage sites and launchers. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing mission. The joint operation comes about 10 days after US and British warships and fighter jets struck more than 60 targets in 28 locations. That what was the first US military response to what has been a persistent campaign of Houthi drone and missile attacks on commercial ships since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October.

Iran is 'directly involved' in Yemen Houthi rebel ship attacks, says US

Iran is very directly involved in ship attacks that Yemen's Houthi rebels have carried out during Israel's war against Hamas, the US Navy's top Mideast commander told The Associated Press on Monday. Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, the head of the Navy's 5th Fleet, stopped short of saying Tehran directed individual attacks by the Houthis in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. However, Cooper acknowledged that attacks associated with Iran have expanded from previously threatening just the Persian Gulf and its Strait of Hormuz into waters across the wider Middle East. "Clearly, the Houthi actions, probably in terms of their attacks on merchant shipping, are the most significant that we've seen in two generations,he told the AP in a telephone interview. The facts simply are that they're attacking the international community; thus, the international response I think you've seen. Iran's mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Cooper's remarks. Houthi .

US now pursuing 'least bad' option in confronting Houthi militants

The urgency is only increa­s­ing. The Houthi attacks have driven down shipments through a waterway that previously handled 12 per cent of global seaborne trade

Strikes against Houthis to continue as ship attacks see no respite: Biden

US forces on Thursday conducted a fifth strike against Iranian-backed Houthi rebel military sites in Yemen as President Joe Biden acknowledged that the American and British bombardment had yet to stop the militants' attacks on vessels in the Red Sea that have disrupted global shipping. The latest strikes destroyed two Houthi anti-ship missiles that were aimed into the southern Red Sea and prepared to launch, US Central Command said in a statement posted to X, formerly known as Twitter. They were conducted by Navy fighter aircraft, the Pentagon said. Biden said the US would continue the strikes, even though so far they have not stopped the Houthis from continuing to harass commercial and military vessels. When you say working, are they stopping the Houthis, no. Are they going to continue, yes," Biden said in an exchange with reporters before departing the White House for a domestic policy speech in North Carolina. Biden's comments followed another significant round of strikes Wednes

US military launches barrage of missiles against Houthi sites in Yemen

The U.S. military fired another wave of ship- and submarine-launch missile strikes against Houthi-controlled sites Wednesday, U.S. officials said, marking the fourth time in days it has directly targeted the group in Yemen as violence that ignited in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war continues to spill over in the Middle East. The strikes followed the official announcement that the U.S. has put the Houthis back on its list of specially designated global terrorists. The sanctions that come with the formal designation are meant to sever violent extremist groups from their sources of financing. The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss details that have not been made public yet. Despite the sanctions and military strikes, including a large-scale operation Friday carried out by U.S. and British warships and warplanes that hit more than 60 targets across Yemen, the Houthis are continuing their harassment campaign of commercial and military ships. The latest incident ...

Houthi rebels attack US-owned ship in Gulf of Aden with bomb-carrying drone

A U.S.-owned ship in the Gulf of Aden came under attack Wednesday from a bomb-carrying drone launched by Yemen's Houthi rebels, officials said. The attack on the Genco Picardy represented the second in recent days targeting vessels directly linked to America after U.S.-led strikes targeting the Houthis. It also underlined the risks to shipping in the vital waterway amid Israel's war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The attack happened some 70 miles (110 kilometers) southeast of Aden, where the drone smashed into the vessel, said the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, an arm of the British navy that oversees Mideast waterways. The ship's captain reported there was fire onboard that had been extinguished, it said. Vessel and crew are safe and proceeding to next port of call, it added. Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, a military spokesman for the Houthis, identified the ship attacked as the bulk carrier Genco Picardy. Satellite-tracking data had put that vessel off Saudi Arabia in recent day

Biden govt pledges new sanctions over Houthi attacks on global shipping

The United States on Wednesday put Yemen's Houthis rebels back on its list of specially designated global terrorists, piling financial sanctions on top of American military strikes in the Biden administration's latest attempt to stop the militants' attacks on global shipping. Officials said they would design the financial penalties to minimize harm to Yemen's 32 million people, who are among the world's poorest and hungriest after years of war between the Iran-backed Houthis and a Saudi-led coalition. But aid officials expressed concern. The decision would only add "another level of uncertainty and threat for Yemenis still caught in one of the world's largest humanitarian crises, Oxfam America associate director Scott Paul said. The sanctions that come with the formal designation are meant to sever violent extremist groups from their sources of financing. President Donald Trump's administration designated the Houthis as global terrorists and a foreign terrorist organisation in one

US-UK airstrikes slow Iran from supplying weapons to Houthis, say officials

On Tuesday, the US hit four Houthi missiles in Yemen in a preemptive strike, a far more limited move than the one carried out on Jan 11

Biden administration to relist Houthis as specially designated terrorists

The Biden administration is expected to soon announce plans to redesignate Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen as a specially designated global terrorists, according to two people familiar with the White House decision and a US official. The move comes as the Houthis have launched dozens of attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea. The group says it has attacked the ships in response to Israel's military operations in Gaza in the aftermath of Hamas' October 7 attack on Israel. The three people familiar with the decision were not authorised to comment and requested anonymity to discuss the matter ahead of the expected formal announcement. Secretary of State Antony Blinken delisted the Houthis as both a foreign terrorist organisations and as specially designated global terrorists in February 2021 as the administration sought to make it easier to get humanitarian aid into Yemen. In its waning days, the Trump administration designated the Houthis a Foreign Terrorist Organization

US strikes Yemen-based Houthis again, hits anti-ship missiles: Official

The US launched a new strike against the Yemen-based Houthis on Tuesday, hitting anti-ship missiles in the third assault on the Iranian-backed group in recent days, a US official said. The strike came as the Iranian-backed Houthis claimed responsibility for a missile attack against the Malta-flagged bulk carrier Zografia in the Red Sea. No one was injured. The vessel had been heading north to the Suez Canal when it was attacked, the Greek Shipping and Island Policy Ministry said. This latest exchange suggested there has been no let-up in Houthi attacks on shipping in the region, despite the massive US and British assault on the group on Friday, bombing more than 60 targets in 28 locations using warship- and submarine-launched Tomahawk missiles and fighter jets. The Houthis' military spokesman, Brig Gen Yahya Saree, said in a pre-recorded statement that it fired after the ship's crew refused to answer warning calls and that the vessel was heading for a port in Israel. According to th

Malta-flagged carrier hit by missile in Red Sea as Houthi attacks continue

A Malta-flagged bulk carrier sustained damage from a missile fired at it in the Red Sea on Tuesday, Greek officials said. Though no group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, suspicion immediately fell on Yemen's Houthi rebels. The Zografia had been heading north to the Suez Canal when it was attacked, the Greek Shipping and Island Policy Ministry said. The ship had no cargo on board and sustained only material damage, the ministry said. The crew includes 20 Ukrainians, three Filipinos and one Georgian. Satellite-tracking data analyzed by The Associated Press showed the Zografia still moving after the attack. The Zografia is managed by a Greek firm. The British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations earlier acknowledged an attack in the vicinity of the Zografia.

Houthi rebels strike US-owned ship off the coast of Yemen, raising tensions

Houthi rebels fired a missile, striking a US-owned ship on Monday just off the coast of Yemen in the Gulf of Aden, less than a day after they launched an anti-ship cruise missile toward an American destroyer in the Red Sea. The attack on the Gibraltar Eagle, later claimed by the Houthis, further escalates tensions gripping the Red Sea after American-led strikes on the rebels. The Houthis' attacks have roiled global shipping, amid Israel's war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, targeting a crucial corridor linking Asian and Mideast energy and cargo shipments to the Suez Canal onward to Europe. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which oversees Mideast waters, said Monday's attack happened some 110 miles (177 kilometers) miles southeast of Aden. It said the ship's captain reported that the port side of vessel hit from above by a missile". Private security firms Ambrey and Dryad Global told The Associated Press that the vessel was the Eagle Gibraltar, a Marshall Islands-flagged bu

Houthi-fired missile strikes a US-owned vessel off Yemen, raising tensions

The attack on the Gibraltar Eagle, though not immediately claimed by the Houthis, further escalates tensions gripping the Red Sea after American-led strikes on the rebels

More oil tankers shun southern Red Sea after US-led strikes in Yemen

Prior to the U.S. and British strikes on Yemen it had been mostly container ships which were avoiding the Red Sea, with oil tanker traffic largely unchanged in December

Red Sea crisis may nudge US buyers to source goods from East Asia

Indian exporters apprehend that unless the hostilities in the Red Sea end quickly, the buyers in the United States (US) will prefer East Asian sources