Yemen’s Houthi rebels sent emails to “intimidate” German shipowners whose boats sail in Middle Eastern waters and serve Israeli ports, the German Shipowners’ Federation (VDR) denounced on Monday.
These boats “are considered potential targets” for “their supposed links with Israel”, specifies a VDR press release.
In two emails seen by AFP, the Houthis say that the German ships concerned “will be directly targeted” and “will be subject to sanctions” if they served an Israeli port.
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These threats are aimed at boats circulating in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the Arabian Sea and even the Indian Ocean.
“We take these threats very seriously and we are in permanent contact with our members and with the authorities,” indicates the federation, which denounces “targeted attempts at intimidation”.
The emails were sent to generic addresses but also to specific people, to the federation and to German shipping companies.
A VDR spokeswoman told AFP that the authenticity of the emails had been confirmed by the German navy and the International Chamber of Shipping.
The Houthis, who control large swaths of Yemen, are part, like the Palestinian Islamist terrorist group Hamas or the Lebanese Islamist terrorist movement Hezbollah, of what the Islamic Republic of Iran calls the “axis of resistance” against Israel.
Since the start of the war in Gaza, triggered by the attack on October 7, 2023, they have carried out several offensives against ships off the coast of Yemen, linked according to them to Israel, using drones and missiles.
Nearly 200 commercial ships have been attacked in this area since October 2023, causing the death of “several sailors”, adds the VDR.
German shipowners, such as the Hapag-Lloyd group, bypass this risk zone via southern Africa, a detour “which lasts two weeks longer and causes high costs”, recalls the Federation.
Germany is a member of the international maritime coalition, created in January by the United States to secure maritime traffic, and of the European Aspides mission.
From February to April, the German frigate “Hessen”, on a mission in the Red Sea, escorted 27 merchant ships and repelled four Houthi attacks, according to Berlin.
The ship “Hamburg”, which was to succeed “Hessen” in August, ultimately remained in the Mediterranean due to increasing tensions in the area.
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