COPENHAGEN\/DUBAI\/CAIRO
\nUS helicopters repelled an attack by Iran-backed Houthi militants on a Maersk (MAERSKb.CO) container vessel in the Red Sea, sinking three ships and killing 10 militants, according to accounts by American, Maersk, and Houthi officials on Sunday.
\nThe naval battle occurred around 0330 GMT on Sunday as the attackers sought to board the Singapore-flagged Maersk Hangzhou, Maersk and U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said. Helicopters from the USS Eisenhower and USS Gravely joined the ship\u2019s security team in repelling the attackers after receiving a distress call, CENTCOM said.
\nMaersk said it was pausing all sailing through the Red Sea for 48 hours after the attack.
\nA spokesman for the Houthis said the group carried out the attack because the ship\u2019s crew refused to heed warning calls. He said 10 Houthi naval personnel were \u201cdead and missing\u201d after their boats were attacked by U.S. forces in the Red Sea.
\nThe naval battle underlines the risk of a regional escalation in fighting as Israel continues with its relentless bombing campaign following a Hamas surprise cross-border attack on Israeli towns on Oct. 7 that left 1,200 dead, and took 240 hostages. Israel\u2019s air and artillery bombardment has killed more than 21,800 people, according to Gazan health authorities.
\nYemen\u2019s Houthis have been targeting vessels in the Red Sea since November to show their support for Hamas, prompting major shipping companies to take the longer and costlier route around the Africa\u2019s Cape of Good Hope rather than through the Suez Canal.
\nThe Red Sea is the entry point for ships using the Suez Canal, which handles about 12% of global trade and vital for the movement of goods between Asia and Europe.
\nThe United States launched Operation Prosperity Guardian on Dec. 19, saying more than 20 countries had agreed to participate in the efforts to safeguard ships in Red Sea waters near Yemen.
\nMaersk, one of the world\u2019s top cargo shippers, said on Dec. 24 it would resume sailing through the Red Sea. However, attacks have continued and U.S. allies have proven reluctant to commit to the coalition, with nearly half not declaring their presence publicly.
\nThe botched Houthi boarding operation was the second attack on the Maersk Hangzhou in as many days. The ship, which is carrying 14,000 containers en route from Singapore, was on Saturday hit by a missile about 55 nautical miles southwest of Al Hodeidah, Yemen.
\nThe shipping company added that the crew of the Maersk Hangzhou crew was safe and there was no indication of fire onboard the vessel, which continued its journey north toward the Suez Canal.
\nWhite House national security spokesperson John Kirby declined to say what options the U.S. is considering when asked on ABC\u2019s \u201cGood Morning America\u201d if Washington would consider a preemptive strike on the Houthis.
\n\u201cWe have made it clear publicly to the Houthis, we\u2019ve made it clear privately to our allies and partners in the region, that we take these threats seriously.\u201d
\nWriting in the Daily Telegraph newspaper, British Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said: \u201cWe are willing to take direct action, and we won\u2019t hesitate to take further action to deter threats to freedom of navigation in the Red Sea.\u201d
\n\u201cThe Houthis should be under no misunderstanding: we are committed to holding malign actors accountable for unlawful seizures and attacks,\u201d he said.
\nEarlier on Sunday, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said he had told Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian in a call that Iran should help stop the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea.
\nThe BIMCO shipping association condemned the attacks and thanked those states involved in repelling them.
\n\u201cWe are thankful to U.S., French, and UK efforts so far and hope even more states will support the coalition with naval assets or other impactful means including diplomatic pressure on the Houthis and their sponsors,\u201d Jakob Larsen, BIMCO\u2019s head of maritime safety and security, told Reuters.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
COPENHAGEN\/DUBAI\/CAIRO US helicopters repelled an attack by Iran-backed Houthi militants on a Maersk (MAERSKb.CO) container vessel in the Red Sea, sinking three ships and killing 10 militants, according to accounts by American, Maersk, and Houthi officials on Sunday. The naval battle occurred around 0330 GMT on Sunday as the attackers sought to board the Singapore-flagged […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":378187,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-378193","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n