Explosion near the Yemeni coast

An explosion occurred Monday on a sea route off the coast of Yemen, the scene of several attacks on commercial traffic for which Houthi rebels have claimed responsibility, two maritime security agencies said.

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The UK Maritime Trade Operations Agency has issued an alert about a “potential explosion” near a ship crossing the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait that separates the Horn of Africa from the Arabian Peninsula.

The Ambre Agency indicated that “a captain reported (…) an explosion that occurred two miles from his ship, which was on its way.”

The incident coincides with a visit by US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to the region, specifically dedicated to maritime security.

He is scheduled to arrive in Bahrain on Monday to discuss “the United States’ efforts to bring together multilateral coalitions to respond to attacks at sea that threaten maritime transportation and the global economy,” according to a US press release. The Ministry of Defense published this weekend.

The Iran-backed Houthi rebels launched a series of drone and missile attacks on ships in the Red Sea, saying they were acting in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip under Israeli bombardment.

Because of these attacks, four major shipping companies, including two of the largest in the world, decided to suspend traffic through the Bab al-Mandab Strait, through which 40% of international trade passes.

On Saturday, a US destroyer shot down more than ten drones launched from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen in the Red Sea, the US military said.

For its part, the British government said that one of its destroyers also shot down a drone in the same area.

On Saturday, Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdel Salam announced Omani mediation to secure the waterway, but warned that the rebels would continue to carry out attacks on ships linked to Israel or heading to Israeli ports if additional quantities of food and medicine were not allowed to enter the Gaza Strip. .