US attacks Houthi anti-ship missiles, vessel hit in Red Sea
WASHINGTON/DAVOS, (Reuters) -
The U.S. military carried out new strikes in Yemen yesterday against antiship ballistic missiles in a Houthi-controlled part of the country as a missile struck a Greek-owned vessel in the Red Sea.
Attacks by the Iran-allied Houthi militia on ships in the region since November have affected companies and alarmed major powers - an escalation of Israel’s more than three-monthold war with Palestinian Hamas militants in Gaza. The Houthis say they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians and have threatened to expand attacks to include U.S. ships in response to American and British strikes on their sites in Yemen.
In a bid to cut off their funding and supply of weapons, U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration plans to put Houthi rebels back on a U.S. list of terrorist organizations, two U.S. officials told Reuters.
The Biden administration in 2021 had taken the Houthis off two lists designating them as terrorists, reversing a decision by former President Donald Trump. The latest move would put the Houthis back on one of the two lists, marking them as “specially designated global terrorists.”
The White House said additional U.S. strikes on Tuesday took out ballistic missiles Houthis were ready to launch, confirming a Reuters story earlier, citing U.S. officials, that a new strike was launched at four anti-ship missiles. The strike had not been previously reported.
“We’re not looking to expand this. The Houthis have a choice to make and they still have time to make the right choice, which is to stop these reckless attacks,” White House spokesperson John Kirby said.
France chose not take part in the U.S.-led strikes because it wants to avoid a regional escalation, President Emmanuel Macron told a news conference. The country has a “defensive” approach in the Red Sea and would stick to this stance, Macron said.
Two heads of international banking groups attending the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos said privately that they were worried the crisis might cause inflationary pressures that could ultimately delay or reverse interest rate cuts and jeopardise hopes for a U.S. economic soft landing.
Dubai-based logistics company DP World’s CFO Yuvraj Narayan said he expected disruptions to hit European imports.
“The cost of goods into Europe from Asia will be significantly higher,” Narayan told Reuters at the annual WEF meeting in Davos. “European consumers will feel the pain ... It will hit developed economies more than it will hit developing economies.”
War risk insurance premiums for shipments through the Red Sea are rising, insurance sources said on Tuesday.
In Spain, four factories owned by French tyre maker Michelin are planning to halt output again this weekend, a further sign of the impact of delays in the delivery of raw materials.
A Malta-flagged, Greekowned bulk carrier was struck by a missile while northbound in the Red Sea 76 nautical miles northwest of the Yemeni port of Saleef, a security firm and two Greek shipping ministry sources said.
Yemen’s Houthis carried out the attack on the ship, the
Zografia, using naval missiles, resulting in a “direct hit”, the group’s military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said.
The Zografia was sailing from Vietnam to Israel with 24 crew on board and was empty of cargo when attacked, one of the Greek sources said. “There were no injuries, only material damage,” the source added. It was still sailing but would probably reroute for safety checks.
Underlining concerns, Japanese shipping operator Nippon Yusen 9101.T, also known as NYK Line, instructed its vessels navigating near the Red Sea to wait in safe waters and is considering route changes, a company spokesperson said.
Shipping giant Maersk MAERSKb.CO, however, sent two container ships through the Red Sea carrying goods for the U.S. military and government.