Status: 15.12.2023, 10:52 a.m.
By: Daniel Dillmann
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On the trade route in the Red Sea, Houthi rebels are again attacking merchant ships. Fire is said to have broken out on board.
Yemen - Houthi rebels from Yemen have apparently attacked a cargo ship in the Red Sea again. This is according to reports from the Reuters and AP news agencies. The container ship is said to be a freighter of the German Hapag-Lloyd. The shipping company confirmed the attack to Der Spiegel on request.
The ship, named "Al Jasrah", is said to have been flying the Liberian flag when it was hit by an unspecified projectile. Fire is said to have broken out on the deck of the freighter. According to information from a British security company referred to by Der Spiegel, part of the cargo fell overboard.
A Norwegian cargo ship that had been attacked by Houthi rebels in the Red Sea. © HANDOUT/AFP
Yemen's Houthi rebels show solidarity with Hamas
There are said to have been no injuries in the attack. The ship was apparently able to continue its journey in the direction of Singapore. It is located on the way south through the Bab al-Mandab strait, which connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden. The strait is considered one of the most important trade routes in the world.
In the wake of the war in Israel, the Iranian-allied Houthi rebels in Yemen announced that they would block the way of ships linked to Israel in solidarity with Hamas. In recent days, there have been several attacks on ships off the coast of Yemen. Among others, US warships were involved.
In response, US President Joe Biden's administration announced that it would work with its allies to expand multinational naval forces in the region. Germany is also apparently considering sending warships to the area to protect the trade route.
U.S. warns of new conflict with Houthi rebels in Yemen
It is not yet known which weapons the Houthi rebels used this time. Most recently, the group had mainly used unmanned drones.
In the United States, concerns about another international conflict are growing after the latest attacks off the coast of Yemen. Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder called the attacks by the Houthi rebels "destabilizing, dangerous and clearly a blatant violation of international law," according to Der Spiegel. (dil
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