(Washington Institute for Near East Policy) Noam Raydan - The Houthi threat to commercial shipping in the Red Sea is still escalating considerably in quantity and quality, and neither the U.S.-led coalition nor the recently launched EU Naval Force Aspides have been able to curtail Houthi attacks. Yet despite the focus on the immediate maritime and trade effects of these attacks, more attention needs to be paid to how well-entrenched the Houthi threat has become, and how it might use its newfound leverage to serve different political agendas in the future. Since May 16, the group has expanded its target list: if a company has ships that call on Israeli ports, all of its vessels may now be targeted, even those that are not sailing to Israel. The Houthis appear to feel empowered rather than weakened. The writer is a senior fellow at The Washington Institute.
2024-07-02 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive