A Navy quartermaster looks through an alidade on the cruiser USS Gettysburg as the ship transits unspecified waters in the Middle East on Feb. 17, 2025. Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have refrained from targeting commercial ships since the Gaza ceasefire began in January, according to the Joint Maritime Information Center. (Kaitlin Young/U.S. Navy)
Houthi rebels in Yemen are abiding by their pledge to halt attacks on Middle East commercial shipping a month after a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, according to a regional industry group.
The Joint Maritime Information Center, which operates in close coordination with the multinational Combined Maritime Forces, said in a report this week that it’s had no word of hostile Houthi activity in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since the Iran-backed group’s Jan. 19 announcement of a pause.
After the outbreak of the Gaza war on Oct. 7, 2023, the Houthis targeted commercial vessels for supporting Israel, though many of the ships attacked by drones and missiles had no apparent link to the country.
Attacks by the militants have resulted in a drastic slowdown in commercial traffic in the region.
The cruiser USS Gettysburg fires a Mark 45 5-inch gun Jan. 23, 2025, during an exercise in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. The Joint Maritime Information Center has received no word of attacks by Houthis on commercial ships since Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza. (Kaitlin Young/U.S. Navy)
The Navy has kept a nearly constant carrier strike group presence in the Middle East since the Hamas terrorist attacks in Gaza that began the conflict. U.S. forces and allies seeking to protect vessels in the Red Sea and nearby waterways launched counterstrikes at a tempo unseen since World War II, Navy officials have said.
The maritime center noted a slight uptick in traffic in the Suez Canal and Bab el Mandeb between Feb. 10 and Feb. 16, but it cautioned that shipping volume there is still well below normal.
Despite the pause, the shipping industry should remain vigilant, JMIC said in the report.
The aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman spent several months in the region supporting strikes on Houthi weapons and command facilities in Yemen.
Truman left the Middle East for a break in the Mediterranean Sea and is undergoing repairs in Greece after a collision with a cargo ship near the Suez Canal.
Other vessels from the Truman Carrier Strike Group, including the cruiser USS Gettysburg and the destroyer USS Stout, are now on duty in the Red Sea, USNI News reported Tuesday.
