By Frank Kamuntu
The United States has announced the launch of a multinational force to protect trade in the Red Sea after attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels forced at least a dozen shipping lines to suspend operations.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Monday that Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Seychelles and the United Kingdom would be among the countries joining the 10-nation “multinational security initiative”.
“Countries that seek to uphold the foundational principle of freedom of navigation must come together to tackle the challenge posed by this non-state actor,” Austin said in a statement, describing the attacks as an issue that “demands collective action”.
The announcement comes after the US and UK navies said over the weekend that their destroyers had shot down a total of 15 drones in the waterway.
The Iran-aligned Houthis have ramped up drone and missile attacks on vessels in key shipping lanes since the start of the war in Gaza, targeting ships alleged to have links to Israel or Israelis.
The rebel group said on Monday it had attacked the Norwegian-owned Swan Atlantic and the MSC Clara using naval drones to show solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
Swan Atlantic’s owner, Norway’s Inventor Chemical Tankers, said in a statement the vessel had no link to Israel and was managed by a Singaporean firm.
There were no injuries reported by either vessel.
Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a senior Houthi official and spokesperson, told Al Jazeera on Monday that the group would confront any US-led coalition in the Red Sea.
More Countries To Be Included
The coalition might also include Egypt and Jordan as additional Arab nations to Bahrain, as they have a vested interest in ensuring the safe passage of ships, said Al Jazeera’s Sara Khairat, reporting from occupied East Jerusalem.
“It is still not clear whether they will join the fold later. Egypt and Jordan, as well as some of the GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council] countries, including Saudi Arabia, are part of the Combined Maritime Forces, which the coalition will be under the umbrella of,” Khairat reported.
“Reading between the lines, it’s a very difficult situation for some of these Middle Eastern countries. You have Saudi Arabia, which is very close, it seems, to signing a deal with the Houthi rebels in Yemen,” she added.
“You have Egypt, which doesn’t want to be seen as going against the Houthis’ message on Gaza – which is for Israel to stop the war on the enclave.”
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