Houthis announce end to Red Sea attacks as shaky Gaza ceasefire holds

Today’s headline news that has caught the attention of  the U-Freight Group, with our portfolio of freight and logistics service that underpin global trade and globalisation, is that the Houthis have officially announced that they have paused maritime attacks on Israel and lifted their so-called naval blockade on Israeli ports.

This announcement appeared at the end of a letter sent to Hamas’s military wing, Kata’ib al-Qassam, by the newly appointed Houthi chief of staff, Yousef Hassan Al-Madani, who succeeded Mohammed Al-Ghamari after he died in Israeli airstrikes.

The Houthi strikes, which killed at least nine seafarers and sank four ships, forced global trade to reroute around the Cape of Good Hope for the past couple of years, increasing transit times and propping up freight rates.

While confirming a pause for now, Al-Madani added that if the conflict in Gaza continues, the Houthis would consider resuming their own operations, including renewed pressure on maritime routes.

Since the truce began between Hamas and Israel on October 10, no new attacks have been claimed by the Houthis. 

Egypt, meanwhile, has said it is developing plans for the resumption of trade through the Suez Canal.

Suez Canal Authority chairman Ossama Rabiee recently convened a meeting with representatives from 20 major shipping lines and agencies to discuss the developments in the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb region and their impact on global trade transiting through the Canal and the maritime transport market.

He invited all shipping lines to conduct trial voyages of their container ships through the Suez Canal.

CMA CGM has been testing a return to the Suez route with a westbound voyage on its MEX service this week, following two eastbound runs on its FAL1 string. 

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