EU Aspides warns Israel-, US-, Saudi-linked ships of higher Red Sea risk

WASHINGTON, United States — The European Union's Aspides naval mission warned on Wednesday that vessels linked to Israel, the United States and Saudi Arabia face a heightened risk of attack from Yemen's Houthis in the Red Sea. The mission advised shipping companies in a notice to avoid transiting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, recommending that the vessels stay clear of those routes until the threat level subsides, according to Reuters. The warning comes a day after US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Washington would respond and "have to deal with the situation" if the Houthis carried out their threat to impose a blockade on commercial shipping in the Red Sea. Shipment data from the London Stock Exchange Group showed that two tankers carrying Saudi crude to China and India changed course on Tuesday following the Houthi warning, turning away from the Red Sea toward the Suez Canal rather than continuing through the Bab al-Mandab strait.