The U.S. Coast Guard seized advanced weapons and lethal aid from Iran, destined for Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen in the Red Sea on Jan. 28, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024, in Tampa, Florida, United States. The boarding team discovered more than 200 packages containing medium-range ballistic missile components, explosives, unmanned surface/underwater vehicle (UUV/USV) components, military-grade communications and networking equipment, anti-tank guided missile launcher assemblies, and other military components. (Photo by CENTCOM / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)CENTCOM | Anadolu | Getty Images Iran-backed Houthi rebels killed six people aboard a cargo ship in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Tuesday, the first reported deaths in attacks on Red Sea shipping in more than a year. Within hours, US forces said they had fired missiles at a container ship that was allegedly trying to violate Washington’s blockade of Iranian ports in the Gulf of Oman. The twin incidents illustrate how the war, which has dragged on into its sixth month, is causing increasing damage to two of the world’s most critical shipping routes, even as diplomats signal progress toward reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Yemen’s Transport Ministry said the victims included four crew members aboard the ship, identified as the Egyptian-owned, Tanzanian-flagged Tihamah, three of them Pakistani citizens and one Indonesian. Separately, Yemen’s coast guard reportedly said that two members of the National Resistance Forces, allied to the Yemeni government, were also killed in a follow-up attack while carrying out a rescue. Yemen’s Ministry of Transport said in its statement that it holds “the Houthi terrorist militias fully responsible for the deaths, injuries and damage inflicted on the commercial ship “Tihamah”, as well as the serious consequences resulting from these attacks,” according to an Arabic translation by Google. A Houthi-aligned media outlet later said the group’s forces had attacked a ship carrying Saudi military equipment, although the Houthis have not officially addressed casualty figures. The Iran-aligned group declared a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea on July 20 after the collapse of a truce in Yemen’s years-long civil war, calling it retaliation for a Saudi “siege” in Yemen, a charge Riyadh has denied. Separately, U.S. Central Command said late Tuesday that a Navy helicopter fired two missiles at the Panama-flagged Vela Nova, disabling its steering and propulsion, after the crew ignored warnings while transiting the Gulf of Oman. Centcom said the ship had attempted to circumvent the naval blockade that Washington reimposed on Iranian ports in mid-April. There were no immediate reports of casualties. U.S. forces have diverted 55 commercial vessels attempting to violate the blockade since it went into effect, disabled three non-compliant ships and boarded two, according to Centcom. The hostilities at sea come at a time when diplomacy between the United States and Iran has stalled. Iran’s Supreme National Security Council laid out broad demands over the weekend to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, including an end to the U.S. naval blockade, sanctions relief, the withdrawal of U.S. troops and war reparations. President Donald Trump has responded by demanding that Iran pay its own compensation. The stalemate has made a return to normal shipping even further out of reach, even as Iran and Oman move closer to an agreement on a new transit corridor through the Strait of Hormuz. Traffic through the strait, which accounted for 20% of global oil trade before the conflict began in late February, has barely slowed. War-induced tumult in the waterway has caused a global shock to energy supplies, dramatically raising oil prices and triggering broader economic consequences. Oil prices have been rising due to renewed tensions. Brent crude futures for October delivery rose 0.6% to $89.44 a barrel on Wednesday, extending a rally that has added more than 7% this week, according to LSEG data. US West Texas Intermediate for September added 0.7% to $83.8. “Current rhetoric suggests any potential deal is still some way off, meaning risks remain skewed to the upside for oil prices,” said Warren Patterson, head of commodities strategy at ING. However, there have been some signs of ongoing diplomatic efforts. A senior Pakistani minister said Tuesday that the United States and Iran are close to “some kind of agreement” over the Strait of Hormuz, offering a glimmer of hope for a deal even as the warring powers appear to be hardening their negotiating stances. Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif told reporters that “things are again shaping up in favor of a peace deal or agreement,” according to Bloomberg. The Pakistani official’s comments came after a spokesperson for Qatar’s Foreign Ministry told Al Jazeera that talks between Iran and Oman on opening a shipping channel through the Strait of Hormuz were at a “critical juncture.” Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
