Commercial ships still sailing through the Red Sea are broadcasting messages about their nationality and even religion on their public tracking systems to avoid being targeted by Yemen’s Houthis after deadly attacks this week by the militia.
Messages have included referring to an all-Chinese crew and management, and flagging the presence of armed guards on board.
‘All Crew Muslim’, read one message, while others made clear the ships had no connection to Israel, according to MarineTraffic and LSEG ship-tracking AIS data.
Maritime security sources said this was a sign of growing desperation to avoid attack by Houthi commandos or deadly drones – but they also thought it was unlikely to make any difference.
Houthi intelligence preparation was ‘much deeper and forward-leaning’, one source said.
Vessels in the broader fleets of both ships attacked and sunk by the Houthis this week had made calls to Israeli ports in the past year, shipping analysis showed.
Maritime security sources said even though shipping companies must step up due diligence on any tangential link to Israel before sailing through the Red Sea, the risk of attack was still high.
In March 2024, the Houthis hit the Chinese-operated tanker Huang Pu with ballistic missiles despite previously saying they would not attack Chinese vessels, the US Central Command said.
The Houthis have also targeted vessels trading with Russia.
“Despite declared ceasefires, areas such as the Red Sea and Bab Al Mandab Strait remain designated high-risk by underwriters,” insurance broker Aon said in a report this week.
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