War on the Rocks – While imperfect, a U.N.-backed political process provides the most significant form of international leverage over the Houthis. If executed effectively, it has the potential to enforce Houthi compromise with other Yemeni political actors. Most importantly, it could provide the conditions necessary for an economic recovery that fosters economic cooperation with Yemen’s wealthy neighbors. Such a recovery process would provide powerful incentives discouraging renewed Houthi use of force in the region.

War on the Rocks – To better understand the conflict between the Houthis and the naval powers protecting shipping in the region, it is important to revisit competing ideas about naval strategy in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. One side emphasized traditional fleets and naval power while the other including a group originating in France known as the Jeune École (young school) posited an alternative approach to naval warfare. It relied on small flotilla craft armed with torpedoes to put traditional fleets at risk and expose their commercial shipping to relentless attack. Today, the United States and its naval partners possess the traditional fleet, while it could be argued that the Houthis are reimagining the Jeune École for the 21st century.

USNI News – The Houthis launched five anti-ship ballistic missiles at a Chinese-owned and operated oil tanker

USNI News – The Houthis plan to attack ships in the Indian Ocean, as they travel toward the Cape of Good Hope, the group announced on Thursday.

DefenceWeb – Reports coming out of the Middle East suggest the Houthi militia may have had a hand in scuttling the drifting UK-owned bulk carrier Rubymar.

(Thanks to Alain)

RUSI – With the Houthi threat, the recent resurfacing of piracy, and continuing patterns of blue crime contributing to growing insecurity in the Western Indian Ocean, fresh efforts are needed to coordinate and deconflict the patchwork of naval operations in the region.

USNI News – Merchant ships and warships in the Red Sea have been under frequent attacks from anti-ship cruise missiles, anti-ship ballistic missiles, explosive surface drones, and aerial drones. Now a new threat has emerged from underwater.

BBC – Repeated US and UK air strikes against the Houthis in Yemen have failed to slow their attacks on ships in the region, BBC Verify has found.

Covert Shores –  The Greek-owned bulk carrier Zografia (IMO: 9486013) was hit in the Red Sea on January 16 2024. It was sailing from Vietnam to Israel at the time. It was said to have suffered only minor damage, with no fatalities among the 24 crew.

(Thanks to Alain)

Naval News – Dramatic attacks on ships in the Red Sea, Arabian Sea and Gulf of Aden have gained world attention. Here are nine observations.

National Interest – James Holmes writes that decisive results against the Houthis seem fanciful, barring an amphibious offensive, an unappealing if not unthinkable option for coalition magnates. 

BBC – Global supply chains could face severe disruption as a result of the world’s biggest shipping companies diverting journeys away from the Red Sea.

War Zone – Yemen’s Houthis are the first to use anti-ship ballistic missiles in anger and have a diverse array of anti-ship cruise missiles, too.

RUSI – Houthi attacks on commercial shipping in the Middle East have been rudimentary, despite using theoretically advanced weaponry. However, it may prove difficult for the West to effectively degrade Houthi capabilities.

BBC – The mass attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels against vessels in the Red Sea on 9 January was their biggest yet and it signals two things. Firstly, the Iranian-backed Houthis, who control their country’s Red Sea coastline, are not backing down in the face of international pressure. Secondly, they clearly have a powerful arsenal of missiles and drones and they are not afraid to launch them at Western warships.

National Interest – Houthi rocketeers have fired an anti-ship ballistic missile —a genre of weaponry ostensibly possessed only by China’s People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force—against merchant shipping.

War on the Rocks – The Houthi rebels and the Ukrainian military share a significant amount in common despite very different perceptions of their legitimacy. In short, both forces have effectively utilized commercially available or inexpensively developed unmanned systems and anti-ship cruise missiles to great effect, stressing and challenging technologically and numerically superior adversarial forces in the Black and Red Seas.

BBC – The US Navy has destroyed Houthi “small boats” attempting to board a container ship in the Red Sea.

War Zone – As the Houthis hurled threats at the U.S. Navy, more than 20 nations are set to participate in Operation Prosperity Guardian in some manner.

War Zone – Many are calling for strikes on Houthi forces after multiple anti-ship attacks off Yemen’s coast, but is that really the best option?