Maersk, one of the world’s largest shipping companies, said on Friday it was suspending its vessels’ passage through a key Red Sea strait following attacks by Yemeni rebels on merchant ships.
The action comes amid the Israel-Gaza war which is inflaming tensions in the middle east.
Iran backed Yemani rebels have been attacking ships they claim are shipping supplies to or from Israel.
One of Mark’s ships, the Maersk Gibralter, was targeted on Friday.
Maersk is the second biggest container shipping company and has a 16 per cent market share.
Teh move will mean Mark’s ships will no longer traverse the vital Suez Canal between Europe and Asia. Instead, vessels will go around the entirety of the African continent, highly raising the time for ships to get to there destinations and the cost of transport.
Mark’s decision could see other shippers following suit severely disrupting world trade.
“Following the near-miss incident involving Maersk Gibraltar yesterday and yet another attack on a container vessel today, we have instructed all Maersk vessels in the area bound to pass through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to pause their journey until further notice,” said a statement to AFP from the Danish firm.
Yemen’s Huthi rebels claimed responsibility on Thursday for an attack on a cargo ship plying the strait through which a significant portion of the world’s shipping passes.
The rebels said the Maersk Gibraltar vessel was “targeted with a drone and the hit was direct,” although, according to a US official, the missile missed.
Huthi spokesman Yahya Saree said the attack came after the ship’s crew “refused to respond to the calls of the Yemeni naval services”, and that it was intended as retaliation for the “oppression of the Palestinian people”.
