Danish freight company A.P. Moller-Maersk has
announced a suspension of all transits through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden
until further notice, in response to the escalating Houthi attacks on its
shipping vessels in the region.
Moller-Maersk
has paused all transits through the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden and is
conducting an ongoing investigation into the attack on its vessel, Maersk
Hangzhou, which occurred on 30 December.
Moller-Maersk maintains that it remains
committed to minimising the impact on its customers’ supply chains and will
continue to keep them updated on the situation in the Red Sea.
It added that in cases where it makes most
sense for customers, vessels will be rerouted and continue their journey around
the Cape of Good Hope.
According to US business magazine, Forbes, the incident unfolded as the
Maersk Hangzhou, en route from Singapore to Port Suez in Egypt, was struck by
an unidentified object in the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
Subsequently, four boats approached the
vessel and opened fire. The vessel’s security team successfully prevented the
attackers from boarding.
Helicopters from US Navy vessels in the Red
Sea reportedly engaged the four Houthi-controlled boats, sinking three of them
and killing the crew members involved.
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The crew of the Maersk Hangzhou is said to
be safe and the freight company reported all necessary security measures had
been implemented to protect them along with receiving all the support the crew
needs.
Maersk has opted to halt all cargo movements
while it “further assesses the constantly evolving situation.”
According to the Wall Street Journal German shipping giant Hapag-Lloyd is avoiding the Suez Canal and the Red Sea and
it has rerouted its ships around the Cape of Good Hope until 9 January.
