Houthi Group Promises Safe Path For Russian And Chinese Ships In The Red Sea

Illustration of ships in the Red Sea. (Wikimedia Commons/IDS.photos)

JAKARTA - The Houthi militant group guarantees a safe route for Chinese and Russian ships while crossing the Red Sea, as they say they will continue to carry out attacks on Israeli-related ships and their allies, in retaliation for Israel's war in Gaza, a group interpreter said.

In an interview with the pro-Kremlin Izvestia newspaper, Houthi senior official Mohammed al-Bukhati said the Yemen-based group would only attack ships linked to Israel and its allies.

"Meanwhile, other countries, including Russia and China, their shipments in the region are not threatened," he said.

"In addition, we are ready to ensure the safety of their ship's journey in the Red Sea, as freedom of navigation plays an important role for our country," he said.

The Houthi group fired another missile at a US-owned commercial ship on Thursday, just hours after a new round of US military attacks on the group in Yemen.

"Israeli ships or ships related to Israel will not have the slightest chance to sail through the Red Sea," Bukhaiti told Russian media.

"The attack on them will continue," he said.

Earlier, Houthi spokesman Mohammad Abdul Salam described the attacks on Yemen by the US and Britain as "constant acts of aggression" aimed at protecting Israel, but it would not destabilize their attacks on ships claimed to be Israeli-related.

The attacks of the United States and Britain on the Houthi group began last week, with the support of a handful of allied countries. This comes amid rising tensions in the Middle East and concerns that the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza could spread to the region.