NYN | News
A recent attack on a commercial vessel near the Bab al-Mandab Strait on Friday has rekindled fears of renewed security threats disrupting the flow of global trade through the Red Sea, one of the world’s most vital maritime routes.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported that a ship transiting the strait, located 15 nautical miles west of the Yemeni coast, reported sighting nearly 15 small boats, some of which approached to within “one or two cables,” before an exchange of gunfire occurred. According to the authority’s bulletin, the boats later withdrew without causing injuries, and the vessel continued its voyage to its next destination.
The British military’s Maritime Trade Operations Centre noted that the incident involved small craft chasing the vessel and firing at it. Lloyd’s List, a maritime-shipping publication, quoted security sources as saying the targeted vessel was the Bobek (IMO 9317781), a Barbados-flagged ship weighing 31,896 tons. The sources confirmed that the boats closed in and pursued the ship 14 nautical miles off the Yemeni area of Dhubab on December 5.
In contrast, the Yemeni Coast Guard under the Aden-based government denied that the vessel had come under fire in the Bab al-Mandab area, affirming that no similar reports had been recorded in the region that links the Gulf of Aden with the Horn of Africa and the northern Red Sea.
However, footage obtained by Lloyd’s List showed the armed security team aboard the vessel exchanging small-arms fire with the boats, with no injuries reported, while the ship continued its southbound transit through the Red Sea.
The publication suggested that the incident may have been carried out either by local fishermen defending their nets or by Somali pirates. It noted that the event comes after a long period of calm following the halt of attacks by Sana’a-aligned forces on Israeli, American, and British vessels since the Gaza ceasefire took effect on October 10. Lloyd’s List believes this attack may revive the concerns of shipowners who had begun considering resuming transits through the Red Sea after months of suspension.
Data from Lloyd’s List Intelligence shows a gradual increase in traffic through Bab al-Mandab and the Suez Canal, with last month recording the highest number of transits in nearly two years. Nevertheless, the region remains vulnerable to security fluctuations, meaning that full confidence in the shipping lane will require more time and stronger guarantees.
The Bab al-Mandab Strait had witnessed, over the past two years, a series of attacks by Sana’a-aligned forces against Israeli, American, and British vessels in connection with the Israeli war on Gaza, before those attacks ceased with the start of the humanitarian truce last October.
