In the Shadow of War on Hamas, the Battle of Red Sea Heats Up, as French Navy Fends Off an Attack by Iran-Backed Houthis

General de Gaulle would be proud. In an escalation of the Battle of the Red Sea, a French Navy frigate patrolling the Red Sea overnight on Saturday intercepted and shot down two drones fired by Houthi rebels from Yemen. The general staff of the French armed forces reported in a public statement that the multi-mission frigate Languedoc shot down the drones as they were heading straight towards it. The “interception and destruction of these two identified threats” took place 68 miles from the Yemeni coast.The drones were fired from the area around Hodeida, a port city in northern Yemen under Houthi control. The first attack came at 11:30 p.m. local Yemen time followed by a second drone attack two hours later, the French said. Houthi rebels, backed by Iran, have threatened to disrupt maritime traffic on the strategic sea route which connects the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean. As much as 10 percent of the world’s oil — crude and refined — is shipped through the Bab el-Mandeb, the narrow strait between Yemen and the Horn of Africa. On Saturday, the Houthis threatened to attack any ship in the Red Sea heading toward Israel if the population of the Gaza Strip did not receive more humanitarian aid. The French navy gave no indication, however, that the Languedoc was heading toward Israel — underscoring how chaotic the waters of the Red Sea have become as the war just north of it goes on. Likely it was on a routine patrol, albeit one of heightened alertness, in the wake of hostilities in the region. In July, France assumed command of a multinational naval task force that patrols the Gulf of Oman and Indian Ocean. The Combined Maritime Forces are headquartered in Bahrain with the American Naval Forces Central Command and the Fifth United States Fleet. In volatile times like these, close Franco-American cooperation on the high seas can pay off in terms of deterring malign actors like the Houthis, or at least hoping to do so. Last week Houthis attacked three commercial ships off the Yemeni coast with ballistic missiles, including one flying the flag of the Bahamas, claiming they belonged to Israelis.An American destroyer shot down three attack drones in self-defense during what the American military described as an hours-long assault. Washington denounced “a direct threat” to maritime security.Hamas, as part of a self-styled “axis of resistance” along with Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, praised the latest “brave and bold” decision of the Tehran-backed Yemeni terrorists. In a message obtained by the Agence France-Presse, Hamas stated, “We call on Arab and Muslim countries to use all their capabilities, on the basis of their historical responsibilities and in a brotherly spirit, to lift the siege of Gaza.”Humanitarian aid to the civilian population of Gaza has been flowing in, mostly through the Rafah crossing point with Egypt. The aid is being distributed as conditions permit. At least, that is, when Hamas terrorists still on the prowl above ground are not stealing it from the Palestinian Arabs. Those realities are unlikely to deter Iran’s regional proxies in the short term. In other developments, the IDF has confirmed that dozens of Hamas terrorists have surrendered and handed over their weapons to Israeli soldiers operating in the northern Strip. Leaked video footage shows several men, apparently members of Hamas, in their undergarments — the simplest way, reportedly, to show that they were not wearing hidden explosive belts. Cracks in the Hamas hold on Gaza are widening. The IDF’s Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, said over the weekend that “We are seeing every day more and more terror operatives killed, more and more terror operatives wounded, and in recent days we’re seeing terrorists surrendering — a sign of the disintegration of the system, a sign that we need to push harder.”The IDF is striking more Hamas tunnels and has, according to Israeli reports, hit 250 terror targets in the past day. Meanwhile, according to Lebanese press reports the Israeli Air Force was on Sunday morning carrying out new airstrikes in southern Lebanon. In Egypt, Al-Ahram reported that Qatari efforts to renew a Gaza truce were “continuing” but that Qatar’s top diplomat, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, said that “we are not seeing the same willingness from both parties.”With any cessation of Gaza hostilities unlikely before the year’s end and Iran’s Houthi hornet nest buzzing, it is likely that the skies above the Red Sea will be lit up some more in the days to come — and not with Christmas lights as the French hear the worlds of the Marseillaise — aux armes, citoyens.

In the Shadow of War on Hamas, the Battle of Red Sea Heats Up, as French Navy Fends Off an Attack by Iran-Backed Houthis

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