Yemen's Houthi rebels claim attacking two cargo vessels in Red Sea

Sanaa [Yemen], December 19 : Yemen's Houthi rebels have claimed to have launched a drone attack on two cargo vessels in the Red Sea, disrupting maritime trade and causing freight companies to avoid the area, Al Jazeera reported.
Houthi spokesperson Yahya Sarea on Monday identified the vessels as the MSC Clara and Norwegian-owned Swan Atlantic and said the attacks were carried out after their crews failed to respond to calls from the group, according to Al Jazeera.
The Swan Atlantic's owner said the ship was struck by an unidentified object but none of the crew was hurt.
The MSC Clara is a Panama-flagged vessel, according to London Stock Exchange Group data. But the details of the attack on the vessel were not immediately clear.
The attacks, which have caused concerns about the passage of oil, grain, and other goods, have pushed up the cost of insuring and shipping goods through the Red Sea. The attacks have caused shipping insurance costs to jump by tens of thousands of dollars a day and raised oil prices.
Oil major BP temporarily paused all transit through the Red Sea, citing security concerns. The US is in talks with other countries to set up a task force to protect the trade route, while Italy is considering joining a naval coalition to patrol the Red Sea.
Notably, the Iran-backed Houthis have attacked numerous vessels over recent weeks, saying they are targeting ships in the Red Sea "with links to Israel" in protest against its military offensive in Gaza. The group has warned against sailing towards the area, Al Jazeera reported.
The attacks have caused concerns about the impact on the passage of oil, grain and other goods on what is an important global trade route, and they have pushed up the cost of insuring and shipping goods through the Red Sea.
Oystein Elgan, the chief executive of owner Inventor Chemical Tankers, said that all of the Swan Atlantic's systems were operating normally, although its water tank was damaged in the attack.
"Inventor Chemical Tankers has no Israeli ties," Al Jazeera quoted Elgan as saying.
The vessel's operator, Uni-Tankers, said the attack caused a small fire, which the crew brought under control, and the ship, carrying vegetable oils, continued to Reunion Island.
A British maritime authority said in an advisory that it had received a report of a vessel that "experienced an explosion" on its port side in an attack 24 nautical miles (44km) northwest of Yemen's al-Makha (Mocha) port.
The incident described by a United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) advisory was similar to the attack on the Swan Atlantic.
Amid these threats disturbing the global economy, several shipping companies have announced they will suspend all journeys through the Red Sea due to the attacks, Al Jazeera reported.
About 40 per cent of international trade passes through the narrow strait between Yemen and northeast Africa, which leads northwards to the Red Sea, Israel's southern port facilities and the Suez Canal.
In a major development, oil major BP temporarily paused all transit through the Red Sea citing security concerns. The alternative route for ships avoiding the Suez Canal is to take the much longer trip around Africa.
Last week, the US announced that it was in talks with other countries to set up a task force to protect the trade route. An Italian source on Monday reported that the country is considering joining a naval coalition to patrol the Red Sea, Al Jazeera reported.