Houthi-run channel reports 10 new US-UK raids on Yemen
The Al Masirah television channel, run by the Houthis in Yemen, has reported 10 new air attacks by the US and UK militaries.
It said the attacks targeted the al-Jabbana and al-Faza areas in the port city of Hodeidah, which has been a main target of the US-UK air strikes that have hit multiple governorates across Yemen since the Houthis started targeting cargo and military vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden in November in support of the Palestinians.
Houthi attacks must ease for salvage of two vessels: UN shipping agency
Efforts to limit environmental damage from a cargo vessel that sank after a Houthi missile strike and another vessel abandoned in a separate attack are on hold until attacks on ships let up, the UN’s maritime shipping regulator says.
The UK-owned ship Rubymar last month became the first vessel lost since the Houthis began targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea area in November. The Greek-owned True Confidence was then abandoned this month after being set ablaze in an attack that killed a few of its crew members near Yemen’s port city of Aden.
“We’re limited in what we can do in an area that is not safe and secure,” Arsenio Dominguez, secretary-general of the International Maritime Organization, said at a media briefing in London.
The Houthis say their campaign against commercial vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden is a show of solidarity with Palestinians against Israel’s offensive in Gaza.
UNSC ‘strongly condemns’ Houthi attacks in Red Sea
The UN Security Council has “condemned in the strongest terms” attacks by the Houthi group in Yemen on commercial vessels in the Red Sea, including the March 6 attack on the True Confidence that killed two Filipino members and one Vietnamese member of the ship’s crew.
Council members demanded that Houthi attacks against commercial vessels cease, urged caution and restraint to avoid further escalation and “reaffirmed that the exercise of navigational rights and freedoms by merchant and commercial vessels of all States transiting the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab, in accordance with international law, must be respected”.
“The Council members recalled the importance of enhancing international and regional cooperation to counter threats to peace and security in the region and called for a de-escalation in the Red Sea to preserve the peace process in Yemen.”
Oh look the UNSC can demand a ceasefire for attacks on ships, just not for genocide, deliberate starvation of 2.3 million people and the systematic destruction of Gaza. Demand a ceasefire in Gaza, get it done, and the Red Sea will de-escalate.
US destroys Houthi anti-ship missiles, drones in Yemen
The US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) says it destroyed “seven anti-ship missiles, three unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), and three weapons storage containers” in attacks on Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.
In a post on X, CENTCOM said it determined that “these weapons presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and U.S. Navy ships in the region”.
March 18 Red Sea Update
On March 18, between 1:00 p.m. and 7:40 p.m. (Sanaa time) United States Central Command (CENTCOM) forces successfully engaged and destroyed seven anti-ship missiles, three unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), and three weapons storage containers in… pic.twitter.com/9K4d5rVqeP
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 19, 2024
Israel fires missiles at military sites in Syria: Report
Israeli forces launched several missiles at military sites near the Syrian capital, Damascus, resulting in some “material damage”, according to the official SANA news agency.
Citing the Syrian government, SANA said Israeli forces launched the missiles from the direction of the occupied Golan Heights. It said Syrian air defences intercepted and shot down some of the missiles.
