CIMSEC – While Houthi attacks in the Red Sea and adjoining waterways may wax and wane in the coming months, safe transit through the Red Sea is unlikely to become a reality in the foreseeable future. The Houthis’ Red Sea campaign is not intrinsically linked to the Gaza conflict and may therefore continue even if that war ends peacefully. The Houthis will likely continue to use these attacks as a leverage point to press for more favorable final-status peace negotiations with both Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s internationally recognized government to help secure them a more advantageous political position in Yemen moving forward. Only an end to the decades-long conflict between the Houthis and their enemies within Yemen will bring an end to the group’s efforts to disrupt maritime commerce in the region.

USNI News – The Houthis are claiming an attack on a Dutch cargo ship that resulted in a fire and left two crew members injured.

USNI News – The Houthis will resume attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea if those ships have ties to companies that work with Israeli ports, the Yemen-based group announced this week.

Naval News – Yemen-based Houthi rebels reportedly sank two merchant vessels last week, the Liberian-flagged, Greek-operated cargo ships Magic Seas and Eternity C, using missiles, unmanned surface vessels, and RPGs.

The War Zone – The Houthis attacked a commercial ship for the first time in approximately seven months, causing the crew aboard to abandon ship.

National Interest – James Holmes writes that in a narrow, partial sense, air power unaccompanied by a ground offensive may have nudged Houthi calculations toward an outcome agreeable to Washington.

USNI News – The Houthis announced this week that they would attack any Israeli ship that sails in the vicinity of Yemen, including the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and Bab al-Mandeb Strait.

The War Zone – Despite 18 months of attacks by the Houthis, the U.S. does not have a clear idea of how many standoff weapons they possess or how they get all of them.

The War Zone – In the wake of the Gaza War ceasefire, the Houthis vowed to limit shipping attacks only to vessels directly affiliated with Israel.

USNI News – The Houthis announced that they targeted the Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group on Friday, casting doubt on whether the Yemen-based terrorist group would stop its attacks on ships in the Red Sea following a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.

USNI News – Stopping Flow of Weapons to Houthis Key to Halting Merchant Attacks, Says Fleet Forces Commander

Interdicting the flow of missiles, drones and other weapons and parts from Iran to the Yemen-based Houthis is key to keeping Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea safer for merchant shipping, Fleet Forces commander said Thursday. Adm. Daryl Caudle, speaking at a Navy League event, said, “we just can’t cede that chokepoint” to the Iranian-backed Houthis in what had been one of the most trafficked commercial sea lanes.

USNI News – U.S. destroyers USS Stockdale (DDG-106) and USS O’Kane (DDG-77) shot down a number of Houthi weapons in the Gulf of Aden between Monday and Tuesday.

USNI News – Houthi forces attacked two American destroyers with drones and missiles as the ships transited the Bab el-Mandeb Strait entering the Gulf of Aden on Monday.

The War Zone – A new report claims Russia gave the Yemeni rebel group targeting data in large measure to keep the U.S. entangled in the region and draw resources and attention away from Moscow’s grinding war in Ukraine.

Wavell Room – The Houthis’ actions perfectly align with what leading US defence intellectual Frank G. Hoffman once called hybrid maritime warfare.  Hoffman has defined hybrid maritime warfare as ‘a form of warfare combining asymmetric naval tactics, sophisticated weapons, and terrorist activity’.  He argued that Iran and Iraq’s systematic attacks against merchant vessels in the late 1980s, which became known as the Tanker War,  exemplified maritime hybrid warfare. 

USNI News – The Yemen-based Houthis attacked crude oil tankers Panama-flagged M/V Blue Lagoon I, owned by a Panamanian company and operated by a Greek one, and M/V Amjad, a Saudi-flagged, owned and operated ship, on Sept.2.

Breaking Defense – Vice Admiral George M. Wikoff suggested that in addition to murkier supply lines, the Houthis have developed their own offensive capabilities to the point where “there’s discussion that they could [be] becoming exporters of technology.”

USNI News – As USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) left the Red Sea, on its way home, the Houthis attacked, sinking the ship. Or at least, that’s what the Yemeni-based group claimed, according to social media posts from the group’s leaders and their supporters.

Defense News – U.S. forces took down dozens of Iran-backed Houthi drones in the Red Sea and in Yemen this month, as Houthi rebels continue to target civilian and commercial vessels in the region.

The War Zone – News that Russia may give Houthis anti-ship missiles comes as the group carried out its first lethal strike on Israel.

Center For Maritime Security – U.S. military officials and policymakers face a difficult choice in the Bab el-Mandeb: commit to a massive and sustained investment in maintaining open sea lanes by permanently neutralizing the Yemeni Houthi movement or allowing the international community to bear the burden of increased shipping costs. The geopolitical consequences of this decision will not be limited to the Arabian Peninsula and—in either case—the Houthis’ asymmetric blockade of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden is setting a massive precedent in the modern history of naval warfare.

National Interest – No defensive umbrella is perfect. It is plausible that the Houthis could sneak an antiship cruise or ballistic missile or drone past aircraft carrier USS Eisenhower’s escorts and the carrier’s own point defenses. But sinking an aircraft carrier is another matter. 

The War Zone – The Houthi’s crude uncrewed surface vessel was featured human dummies and approached the ship while security took no defensive action.

The War Zone – A Liberian-flagged bulk carrier is taking on water and not under the command of its crew after being hit by a Houthi drone boat.

CIMSEC – China does indeed have influence over Iran and, by extension, the Houthis in what has now become an “Axis of Insecurity.” Panda Express would reduce the likelihood of new attacks like that on M/V True Confidence and M/V Huang Pu and put direct pressure on China to either explain to the court of international opinion why shadowing Chinese vessels is a safe tactic, or influence Iran and the Houthis to end their aggression in the Red Sea altogether. Either way, China loses, and the rest of the world wins. It’s time to order Panda Express.