In early January, Jihad Watch reported that UK retail giant Next and other outlets warned of shipping delays due to ongoing Houthi attacks on Red Sea merchant ships. And Biden’s naval coalition to protect shipping in the Red Sea is being met with tenacity. In December, the Iran-aligned Houthis were talking tough against the maritime coalition, threatening that “the Red Sea will be your graveyard.” The emboldening of the Houthis follows a threat from Iran days ago that any such coalition would face “extraordinary problems.” And it is.
Italy’s Defense Minister Guido Crosetto “told lawmakers” that the Houthis not only threaten “the security of navigation but also (Italy’s) economic stability.”
Western enemies are watching closely. Although Iran has not directly entered the Gaza war on Hamas, and neither has its proxy Hizballah, these enemies are calculating the strength, determination and strategy of America and its allies as they struggle against the Houthis.
In the latest, a Houthi cruise missile reportedly got “so close to a U.S. Navy warship that it had to be shot down with the ship’s Close-In Weapons System.”
“Red Sea disruption threatens Italy’s economic stability – minister,” Reuters, January 31, 2024:
Ongoing disruption in the Red Sea threatens to destabilize Italy’s economy and marginalize ports in southern Europe, Italy’s defense minister said on Thursday.
Attacks since mid-November on commercial vessels by Iran-aligned Houthi militants, who control the most populous parts of Yemen, have disrupted international shipping, forcing some companies to suspend transit through the Red Sea and instead take a much longer, costlier journey around South Africa.
“From a geopolitical perspective, the continuing of this situation could lead to the marginalization of ports on the Mediterranean Sea,” Defense Minister Guido Crosetto told lawmakers from parliament’s defense committees.
“Not only does it threaten the security of navigation but also (Italy’s) economic stability.”….
࿗Infidel࿘ says
What happened to the G20 agreed sea+land bridge from Mumbai across the Arabian Sea to Emirates/Oman/Saudi/Israel and then via the Mediterranean? Get that going, and then Europe’s supply chain can be stable again
I do sympathize a tad w/ Egypt, though, which has lost most Suez traffic
drew webb says
Where does the $5000 per truck go to if not Egypt ? And the thousand people pay to leave Gaza.
martin walden says
So why hasn’t Italy sent its warships to the Red Sea to protect the shipping lanes. Please put your mouth where your “money” is instead of stuffing it with spaghetti… or soon you will have to settle on eating crow (as we say in the USA).
OLD GUY says
He wants American tax dollars to provide the protection not Italy.
America needs to STOP being the policeman of the world.