By Al-Fassel | 2024-03-26

The Houthis fired a volley of missiles at a Chinese-owned tanker in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen on March 23, despite repeated promises that they would not target Chinese and Russian ships.

The Iran-backed group fired five anti-ship ballistic missiles at the Panamanian-flagged and Chinese-owned and -operated Huang Pu oil tanker, launching four before the fifth hit the vessel, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said.

The ship issued a distress call, it said, but did not request assistance.

A fire broke out on board but was extinguished within 30 minutes, according to CENTCOM and the United Kingdom Marine Trade Operations agency (UKMTO).

The vessel was struck 23 nautical miles west of the Yemeni port of Mokha, AFP reported, and resumed its course after the attack, with MarineTraffic reporting it was sailing out of the Red Sea into the Gulf of Aden towards its next port of call.

Following the attack on the Huang Pu, US forces engaged six drones launched by the Houthis, five of which crashed into the Red Sea, CENTCOM said.

The sixth flew into a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen.

"The Houthis attacked the MV Huang despite previously stating they would not attack Chinese vessels," CENTCOM said.

The assault on the Chinese-owned vessel came shortly after China and Russia reportedly reached a new understanding with the group that their ships would not be attacked.

During talks between diplomats in Oman and Houthi political figure Mohammed Abdel Salam, the Houthis told China and Russia their ships would have safe passage through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, Bloomberg reported March 21.

In exchange, Russia and China may provide political support to the Houthis in bodies such as the United Nations Security Council, sources told Bloomberg.

Though the Houthis previously promised safe passage to Russian and Chinese ships, the group struck a tanker in the Gulf of Aden on January 26 that was carrying a cargo of naphtha that originated in Russia.

And on February 12, the Houthis attacked a ship carrying a cargo of corn to their ally and backer, Iran.

Heightened threat to shipping

The Houthis have attacked civilian and military ships sailing off Yemen's shores at least 50 times since late last year, US assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs Celeste Wallander said March 21.

Shipping companies and merchant vessels have been forced to reroute away from the Red Sea to avoid the attacks, taking the longer and costlier route around the Cape of Good Hope at the southernmost tip of Africa.

Shipping company Maersk on March 22 said it was too early to resume sailings through the Red Sea because of a continued elevated risk level, Reuters reported.

Maersk, one of the world's biggest container shipping companies, suspended Red Sea traffic on January 5 and has redirected ships via the Cape of Good Hope.

But now the alternative route is under threat as well, with Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi on March 14 threatening that the group would expand its attacks to ships rerouting around the southern tip of Africa.

It was unclear how this threat might be enacted, though Russian state media has spread the word that the Houthis have a long range hypersonic missile in their possession -- a claim the United States has dismissed.

Meanwhile, analysts have linked a recent rise in piracy to the Houthis' attacks, as vessels slowing down to await instruction on how to proceed in the approach to Bab al-Mandeb create an easy target for pirates.

Another week of violence

The Houthis' latest threats and attacks occurred as the group came under fire from US and allied forces seeking to prevent the ongoing violence.

The US military on March 22 said it had struck three of the group's underground storage facilities and had "successfully engaged and destroyed" four drones in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.

Four anti-ship ballistic missiles were fired toward the Red Sea the same day, it said.

On March 21, a coalition aircraft engaged and destroyed one unmanned surface vessel (USV) launched by the Houthis, CENTCOM said.

Coalition forces also destroyed two anti-ship ballistic missiles launched by the Houthis from areas of Yemen they control toward the Red Sea, it said.

On March 20, a coalition aircraft destroyed one drone, and CENTCOM destroyed one USV launched by the Houthis from Yemen.

On March 19, Houthi spokesman Yahya Sarea said the group had targeted a fuel tanker, Mado, in the Red Sea with a naval missile and Israel's Eilat port and resort region with "winged missiles," Al-Arabiya reported.

Mado, a Marshall-Islands flagged liquefied petroleum gas tanker, was en route to Singapore from Saudi Arabia at the time, maritime shipping trackers showed.

On March 18, CENTCOM forces destroyed seven anti-ship missiles, three drones, and three weapon storage containers in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.