NYN | News
A senior Israeli official has acknowledged the difficulty of resuming Israeli commercial navigation in the Red Sea, given the ongoing maritime attacks carried out by Sanaa’s forces, which he described as “the most violent and precise” compared to previous strikes.
Yigal Maor, former head of the Israeli Shipping and Ports Authority, said in an interview with the Hebrew-language newspaper Davar that the belief that the Houthi (Ansar Allah) attacks had ceased was mistaken. He noted that the recent attacks have dispelled this notion and placed Israel before an unsafe maritime reality that will be difficult to overcome in the near future.
According to Davar, Maor added that the two most recent attacks showed that the Houthis (Ansar Allah) are not only continuing their operations but are doing so with more advanced tactics and using precision missiles. He explained that countering such threats “requires air defense systems that cannot be installed on every commercial vessel.”
Maor pointed out that the American and European forces present in the region are incapable of securing the entire Red Sea area. He said: “Even Washington, which for decades played the role of maritime corridor policeman, now appears less present, amid growing pressures on defense budgets and tasks that are expanding faster than available resources.”
In what was seen as a rare admission of the blockade’s impact, the Israeli official emphasized the economic and strategic importance of the Port of Eilat. Although he stated that the overall damage to Israel remains “small,” he warned that the port could collapse unless the government intervenes with financial support.
Maor explained that the Port of Eilat had served as the main entry point for vehicles coming from Asia, particularly from South Korea, Japan, and China. Its disruption has forced Israel to rely more on alternative routes through Europe, contributing to increased costs for certain goods such as medicines and live livestock.
Maor concluded his remarks with a pessimistic tone, saying: “Unfortunately, I don’t see Israeli maritime trade returning to the Red Sea anytime soon, nor do I see a solution to this problem on the horizon.”
