Yemen: Maersk halts Red Sea shipping after another attack

Danish shipping giant A.P. Moller-Maersk said on Friday that it was pausing container shipments through the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen until further notice. 

This comes a day after one of its ships suffered a near-miss, and as another vessel belonging to Germany's Hapag-Lloyd sustained damage but no injuries on Friday. 

"Following the near-miss incident involving Maersk Gibraltar yesterday and yet another attack on a container vessel today, we have instructed all Maersk vessels in the area bound to pass through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait to pause their journey until further notice," the company said in a statement. 

Germany's reaction to the attack

Speaking in Berlin on Friday after talks with her Lebanese counterpart, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock condemned Yemen's Houthi rebels for the increase in attacks on commercial shipping.

"The Houthi attacks on merchant ships in the Red Sea must stop immediately," Baerbock said. 

She also thanked Saudi Arabia, which leads a foreign coalition fighting the Houthis on behalf of Yemen's exiled government, for its assistance in intercepting or thwarting other attempted strikes.

What do we know about Friday's attack?

The Hapag-Lloyd shipping company said that its Liberian-flagged vessel "Al Jasrah" was damaged after being shot at by an unknown projectile in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Friday. 

A Hapag-Lloyd spokesperson said no injuries were reported, adding the company would "take additional measures to secure the safety of our crews." The spokesperson said that the vessel had departed from the Greek port of Piraeus en route to Singapore.

The company said later on Friday that it was also considering halting shipments through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait.

Fire originated from 'Houthi-controlled' area

UK-based maritime security company Ambrey said the vessel sustained physical damage from a projectile, which caused a "fire onboard."

"The projectile reportedly hit the port side of the vessel and one container fell overboard due to the impact," Ambrey said.

A US Defense Department spokesperson told AFP news agency that an unknown projectile was launched at the vessel from a "Houthi-controlled" region of Yemen. 

Yemen's Houthis target Red Sea shipping

Iran-backed, Yemen-based Houthi rebels have increased attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea in recent weeks. 

The attacks come as a proxy response to Israel's continued war in Gaza against the Tehran-backed Islamist militant group Hamas, which is considered a terrorist organization by the EU, US and several countries. 

The Houthis have said they will target any ships traveling to Israel, and are now launching near daily attacks, although most are unsuccessful, and are targeting vessels traversing the Red Sea with little or no connection to Israel.

The Houthis did not immediately claim responsibility for the assault on the Al Jasrah Friday, but did claim a missile strike erlier in the week on a Norway-flagged tanker. 

Speaking in Tel Aviv, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said: "While the Houthis are pulling the trigger, so to speak, they're being handed the gun by Iran."

wmr/rt (AFP, Reuters, AP, dpa)