More than 20 countries have agreed to participate in the US-led coalition to protect commercial shipping in the Red Sea from attacks by Houthi militants from Yemen.
Pentagon spokesman General Pat Ryder told reporters, “We have more than 20 countries that have signed on to participate” in the coalition, AFP reported.
He added that the Houthis are threatening global economic prosperity and have turned into “bandits” on the Red Sea shipping line in Yemen.
Ryder noted that the coalition forces will conduct patrols in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden to assist commercial ships crossing the international waterway and urge Houthis to cease their attacks.
This comes after US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Monday, December 18, announced the commencement of a special operation called Prosperity Guardian to protect navigation in the Red Sea.
The countries included in the coalition are the United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles, and Spain.
About eight countries that have joined the operation have declined to publicly announce their participation due to the political sensitivity of the operation.
Following the announcement of the coalition, the Houthis vowed to continue their operations, and warned that “any country” that moves against them will have its ships targeted in the Red Sea.
In recent weeks, the Houthi group has attacked and seized several ships in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in response to the war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
With the continuous Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, major shipping companies such as the Danish Maersk, the German Hapag-Lloyd, the French CMA CGM, and the British British Petroleum have suspended the passage of their ships through the Bab al-Mandab Strait until ensuring safety of navigation.
