Houthi sea mines drift towards Red Sea shipping lanes

ADEN -- Since the explosion of a sea mine at a fish landing site in al-Hodeidah province's al-Munirah district in 2018, fisherman Salem Nasser puts to sea each day to earn his living not knowing whether he will return home in the evening.

"The difficult living conditions resulting from the war forced us to continue fishing, despite the fear and apprehension our families experience until we return," said Salem, who hails from the province's al-Durayhimi district.

"Isn't it time already to stop the war?"

The Houthis laid the mine that exploded in 2018, according to media reports.

According to the Yemeni Landmine Records observatory, the Iran-backed group is still laying mines near Red Sea islands.

Driven by the wind, "mobile sea mines are moving close to some islands located in the northwestern sector of the Red Sea, after they were deployed by the Houthis in recent days", the observatory warned in a July 13 social media post.

Marine engineering teams have found, dismantled and disposed of 3,452 sea mines recently on the Yemeni coast and in the vicinity of a number of Red Sea islands, the observatory said.

Drifting sea mines

The contamination of the Red Sea with more sea mines of various sizes and types threatens international commercial traffic and marine life and poses imminent danger to the lives of fishermen and seafarers, it said.

From July to October, seasonal monsoon winds blow in the Red Sea corridor, observatory executive director Fares al-Humairi told Al-Mashareq.

"During the past weeks, the Houthis took advantage of the winds and deployed sea mines, and the winds caused them to drift towards the government forces' naval vessels and the shoreline of a number of Yemeni islands," he said.

These include the isles of Ghurab, Tawak, Baklan, Abu Shajar, Sahar, al-Fashet, Sana and other small, scattered islands in the Red Sea.

If the wind movement continues, the sea mines may well drift beyond Yemeni waters and into regional and Saudi territorial waters, al-Humairi said.

He said he believes the Houthis' mine deployment was preceded by a careful study of sea conditions, the tides and the height of the waves, which indicates the group has experts with knowledge of naval warfare.

"This new deployment of sea mines could set a new and dangerous precedent, in light of the way weather conditions were exploited and the smooth and streamlined movement and spacing of those explosives," al-Humairi added.

'A great danger'

There are concerns that sea mine contamination could affect the Red Sea's rich and diverse ecosystem, al-Humairi said.

This is in addition to the threat to the lives of traditional fishermen who support tens of thousands of Yemeni families with their catch.

"We are now facing a great danger," he said. "Even if the Houthis stop deploying more sea mines today, we would need many years to clean up this contamination and ensure Yemeni maritime security."

The Houthi sea mine war is a renewed conflict, which is this time targeting the regional and international community, said al-Hodeidah provincial spokesman Ali Hameed al-Ahdal.

The hardest hit are the local fishermen, he said, as the majority of the population of the coastal districts in al-Hodeidah, more than 75%, work in the fishing industry.

"The ordinary fisherman does not have the means to protect himself from the danger of these mines," he said.

The other target of the sea mines is international trade vessels, al-Ahdal said.

"We have to bear in mind here that between 40 and 45% of Europe's trade passes through Bab al-Mandeb," he noted, suggesting that European countries are the targets of the Houthis -- and behind them, Iran.

The Iranian regime wants to deliver a message to the international community that it has the ability to destabilise Bab al-Mandeb Strait and the Suez Canal, he said.

The Houthis' deployment of sea mines is a sign that "the world is dealing with a terrorist group that does not believe in peace unless it is in line with the aims of its regional sponsor, Iran", political analyst Mahmoud al-Taher told Al-Mashareq.

"The Houthis' objective always has been blackmail," al-Taher said, noting that the group poses an ongoing threat to fishermen and international shipping traffic.