Ports in Yemen are increasingly coming under attack from Saudi and Gulf Co-operation Council states as they attempt to regain control of areas run by Shia Houthi militias and al-Qaeda jihadis.
The Yemen Times reported yesterday that the strategic port city of Aden, the last stronghold of forces loyal to President Hadi, had fallen to Houthi rebels. The claim was denied by loyalist forces and by the deputy head of the port association, Abd ar-Rabb al-Halyaki.
Houthi commanders have threatened to launch attacks on Saudi Arabia, in response to continuing airstrikes, where there is a sizeable Shia minority. This could result in the conflict widening across the Arabian peninsula.
It was also reported last week that the port city of Al-Mukalla, just 65km from the Ash Shihr oil terminal and 140km from Total's Balhaf gas terminal, had been seized by al-Qaeda.
The Red Sea port of Al Hudaydah (Hodeida) is within a Houthi-controlled area but is still functioning. Both China and India have been evacuating their citizens through the port. An airstrike on a dairy factory at the port last week caused numerous civilian deaths, and imports and exports have ceased, with Yemen-bound ships being diverted to other ports in the region.
Reuters on Thursday quoted a flour company manager as saying, "It has been a few days now since our imports have stopped and we are not receiving any more wheat." A shipping agency official said that no stevedores are available to unload ships, although reportedly some vessels are awaiting oil cargoes at Aden Refinery.
All the rebel-held areas bordering the Gulf of Aden have become major targets for coalition airstrikes, making delivery of urgently needed humanitarian aid all but impossible. Yemen has to import 90% of its food, most of it by sea.
The worsening bloodshed has also provoked an exodus of foreign workers, who are mostly being evacuated by their countries' naval vessels. Two Shipping Corporation of India passenger vessels, Kavaratti and Coral, have also been commandeered for the evacuation effort.
In the past decade, up to half a million Somalis crossed to Yemen in search of security and work, but now the flow has reversed, with both Somalis and Yemenis fleeing across the Gulf of Aden to find sanctuary in Somalia. Most are arriving on small boats at the ports of Bosaso, in Puntland, and Berbera, Somaliland. However, a large number of refugees are also making landfall in Djibouti, which has asked the international community for help to manage the influx. Ports along the southern shore of the Gulf of Aden are becoming congested with diverted vessels and refugee ships.
There is no immediate threat of the critical Bab al-Mandeb strait being closed to shipping, but ship masters and operators have been warned that the situation around Yemen is extremely volatile and should take appropriate advice.
The UK P&I Club on Thursday issued an advisory stating, "
Topic: Yemen ports become focus for rebel attacks (Read 1662 times)