After a war between Israel and Hamas broke out in October, Yemen's Ansar Allah rebel movement, also known as the Houthis, has intensified its attacks on cargo ships linked to Israel in the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea, vowing to continue the attacks until Israel ends its military actions in the Gaza Strip.
The Pentagon is "engaged with industry on a near-daily basis to gauge needs and provide reassurance that the international community is there to help with safe passage," Air Force Lt. Col. Bryon McGarry, a Defense Department spokesperson for the Middle East and Africa, was quoted as saying in the report.
Last week, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced the establishment of a multinational operation to secure the Red Sea amid the surge in Houthis' attacks on cargo ships, saying that the United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the Seychelles, and Spain would take part in the mission. The Houthis, for their part, vowed to attack any ships that join the US-led maritime coalition.
"We are not putting a timeline on this operation," McGarry said. "We’ll stand firm with our partners in the region for as long as it takes until the threat to international shipping in these waterways has ceased."