US bombing continues /Outraged Houthis extend blockade to all US ships/ China’s COSCO halts shipping to Israeli ports

from thefreeonline on 13th Jan 2024 info via The Cradle

The Ansar Allah movement (Houthis) have survived a nine year war and naval blockade by Saudi colonists, backed and directed by the US and suffered an estimated 77,000 deaths, and have militant solidarity with Palestinians suffering US backed Israeli genocide.

Chinese state-owned shipping company COSCO, the fourth largest in the world, has halted sailing to Israeli ports, Israeli media outlet Globes reported on 7 January, in the wake of attacks and attempted seizures of vessels heading to Israel via the Red Sea by Yemeni armed forces.

In a similar development, the Hong Kong-based OOCL halted all cargo deliveries to Israel last month, citing “operational problems.”

On 12th Jan the US and UK bombing began with over 70 attacks and more today. Yemen officials have vowed to continue and expand their blockade to all ships in the waterway. Several million outraged citizens demonstrated across Yemen.

Yemeni forces have been attacking Israeli-bound vessels in the Red Sea in response to Israel’s war on Gaza, which the Sanaa government views as genocide.

Washington and its allies in turn formed the Prosperity Guardian naval coalition and issued an ultimatum to Yemen’s Ansarallah-led government to stop their Red Sea operations or suffer the “consequences”, however only the UK is actively taking part.

Yemen’s actions forced numerous leading shipping companies to instead travel around the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa to reach Europe, extending the shipping times by two weeks and increasing costs, but the US still vetoes UN Security Council ordering a ceasefire.

On 31 December, US naval forces sank three Yemeni boats in the Red Sea, killing ten Yemeni naval soldiers, now proclaimed as national hetoes. The Houthi attacks have so far not killed anyone.

From the onset of the Gaza conflict on 7 October, Yemeni military forces have targeted a minimum of 15 merchant vessels either bound for Israeli harbors or owned by entities associated with Israel.