“Damage Control Underway”: Cargo Ship Hit By Missile In Gulf Of Aden In Suspected Attack By Houthi Rebels

More than six months since the Biden administration launched Operation Prosperity Guardian to defend the critical maritime chokepoint Bab al-Mandab Strait from Iran-backed Houthis and ensure freedom of navigation in the Red Sea, we’re witnessing yet another alarming development. Late Saturday, rebels targeted a Western-linked cargo ship with missiles. This underscores the ongoing threat to the shipping lane and the utter failure of Biden’s disastrous foreign policies. 

AP News cites a report from private security firm Ambrey, which said the Antigua and Barbuda-flagged cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden was struck by a missile on its forward station, sparking a fire. A second missile missed the vessel, and rebels “on board small boats in the vicinity opened fire on the ship during the incident,” the security firm said, adding no crew on the vessel was hurt in the attack. 

“The Master reports that the vessel was hit by an unknown projectile on the aft section, which resulted in a fire. Damage control is underway, the Master reports no casualties and the vessel is proceeding to its next port of call,” the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations wrote on X. 

AP notes, “Suspicion for the attack immediately fell on the Houthis. The rebels did not immediately claim the assault, though it can sometimes take hours or even days for them to acknowledge their attacks.” 

 In the global economy, the continued Red Sea disruption is generating a supply shock. Containerized shipping costs for several major shipping lanes are exploding. 

Meanwhile, Houthis continue to claim a successful attack on the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Nimitz-class supercarrier in the Red Sea last week despite US CENTCOM denying any such attack. 

Houthis also mentioned that their attack coverage expanded into the Mediterranean Sea. The terror group claimed a successful attack last month on an Israeli-linked ship in the Mediterranean area. 

And there’s news just days ago from AP that Houthis unveiled a solid-fuel missile that “resembles aspects of one earlier displayed by Iran that Tehran described as flying at hypersonic speeds.” 

With Israel recently mentioning the war against Hamas could last another seven months, there’s reason to believe the Red Sea area will become hotter. What’s also concerning was Biden’s ‘greenlighting’ of Ukraine to attack Russian territory with US-made weapons.

All of this is a sign that the world continues to fracture into a multipolar state, full of conflict and danger. The investment theme in this period is defense.