London [UK], January 16: The UK will "consider" whether it "has to take further action" to repel Houthi attacks on international cargo ships in the Red Sea, Defence Secretary Grant Shapps has said.
Shapps said Britain needs to "wait and see" what happens after the joint airstrikes with the US on Friday, military action that followed weeks of assaults on shipping along the vital global route by the Iran-backed military group.
Sunday saw further action in the region, with the US military confirming that one of its fighter jets shot down an anti-ship cruise missile fired towards a US destroyer in the Red Sea. Shapps, taking part in a media round ahead of a speech on Monday, said the actions by the Houthi rebels in Yemen are akin to "thuggery" as he refused to rule out taking part in further co-ordinated air strikes.
The Houthis' actions have posed a threat to the flow of global trade, disrupting merchant vessels from passing through the sea to the Suez Canal, a route which serves 15 percent of world shipping.
The militant group, which backs the Palestinian militant organisation Hamas, claims it has targeted ships with links to Israel. But Shapps said the attacks have been "completely unacceptable," with ships from more than 50 nations affected.
The defence secretary said the purpose of the Royal Air Force (RAF) airstrikes with the US last week was "not to go into Yemen or anything like that," but to "send a very clear, I hope unambiguous message" for the Houthis to stop their assaults.
The Cabinet minister continued: "We will now watch and monitor the situation very carefully."
Source: Qatar Tribune
