The Houthis have shown little willingness or ability to accurately distinguish between the ships they target, leaving Washington and its partners with no choice but to doubt the group’s supposed “ceasefire” and keep up the pressure.
Despite the Houthi Pledge to Limit Attacks, the Red Sea Remains Highly Volatile
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
This report analyses the evolution of Houthi strategy at sea over the twelve months since the start of the campaign, particularly with regard to targeting criteria, geographic scope and weapons systems used. It also considers the international military response, which includes several multinational naval missions, as well as the actions by Israel, the United Kingdom and the United States against ground targets in Yemen.
Reading Of The Week: Navigating troubled waters The Houthis campaign in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden
The International Institute for Strategic Studies
In 1984, a sea mines act of sabotage, whose attribution remains debated, disrupted navigation across the Red Sea’s gateways - the Suez Canal and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. In response to regional requests, a U.S.-led coalition conducted countermeasure operations, restoring safe shipping in the strategic waterway connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean.
If the Gaza War Continues, Will the Houthis Mine the Gateways to the Red Sea?
Stimson Center
Western navies have found themselves increasingly reliant on weapons systems doctrinally understood as “last lines of defence” in the Red Sea. This article investigates the nature of the Houthi threat and the operational intricacies faced by the “Prosperity Guardian” and “Aspides” coalition missions.
Nobody Does it Better. The Use of CIWS in the Red Sea and The Gulf of Aden
The Security Distillery
Almost six months after the launch of their operations in the Red Sea, the Yemeni rebels, known as Houthis, continue to keep global trade hostage. This is despite a number of Western operations to contain and degrade the threat they managed to pose, with missiles and drones continuing to be fired at commercial ships who try to cross the Red Sea towards the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean.
Taking Stock of Aspides: A Step Forward in Europes Geopolitical Role in the Red Sea?
Brussels International Center
On February 19, the European Union launched a new maritime security operation, EU Naval Force Operation Aspides, in response to escalating Houthi attacks on Western warships and merchant vessels in the Red Sea basin and northwestern Indian Ocean. The name Aspides, which means “shields” in Greek, denotes the operation’s underlying defensive nature.
Operation Aspides: The European Unions Response to the Red Sea Crisis
The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
Since the Houthis launched their assault on global shipping in November, the United States and its partners have scrambled for ways to restore calm and commerce to the Red Sea. First, on December 18, Washington assembled a maritime coalition designed to boost the U.S. presence in the area and promote regional security. Then, in January, the United States started intercepting Iranian military shipments bound for the Houthis and issued multiple warnings to the group. Finally, after nearly two months of continuous attacks in the Red Sea, the United States and the United Kingdom launched a barrage of strikes against the Houthis’ facilities.
How Washington Emboldened the Houthis
Foreign Affairs
On January 12, the US launched, in collaboration with the UK and with the support of Canada, Australia, Netherlands and Bahrain, its first-ever raids against Houthis’ military sites in Yemen since October 7. This occurred three months after the Houthis initiated unrestrained attacks on Israel and commercial navigation in the Red Sea.
The Houthis, Yemen, the Middle East: Four things the US shouldnt underestimate about the Red Sea Crisis
Italian Institute for International Political Studies