THE Houthis have sought to reassure shipowners that Red Sea navigation remains safe after capturing the Yemeni port of Mokha and advancing towards the Bab el Mandeb Strait, moves that security analysts say strengthen the group’s ability to threaten designated targets in one of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints, reported Editor-in-Chief Richard Meade and maritime intelligence and research director Bridget Diakun.

In a statement on Thursday (September 10), the Iran-backed militia said navigation in international waters of the Red Sea remained safe, except for vessels covered by its declared embargo on Saudi shipping.

The statement followed a rapid advance along Yemen’s Red Sea coast that saw the Houthis seize Mokha and reportedly move onto islands including Perim (Mayun) and the Hanish archipelago, territory overlooking the southern entrance to the Red Sea.

Suez Canal recovery gathers pace as Hormuz disruption boosts traffic, but Bab el Mandeb revival stalls

The Suez Canal’s recovery accelerated in July and continued into August as disruption in the Strait of Hormuz and changes to Saudi oil export routes pushed traffic through the Egyptian waterway to its highest level since the Red Sea crisis began, reported Editor-in-Chief Richard Meade and maritime intelligence and research director Bridget Diakun.

A total of 1,232 ships transited the canal in August, equivalent to 102.4m dwt, according to Lloyd’s List Intelligence vessel-tracking data. That marked the second consecutive month in which transits exceeded 1,200 and represented a 28% increase in traffic volumes and a 43% rise in tonnage compared with a year earlier.

The improvement helped lift canal revenues, which rose 44% year on year to $505m in July, according to Egyptian statistics agency CAPMAS. It was the strongest monthly revenue performance since December 2023, before vessels began abandoning the Red Sea in large numbers following seemingly indiscriminate Houthi attacks on commercial shipping.

Boxship recycling remains negligible amid rising fleet exits due to conflicts

Containership recycling remains at negligible levels this year, despite a growing pool of ageing tonnage that will eventually need to leave the fleet. But rising numbers of vessel total losses, due to conflict in the Middle East and Ukraine are adding to fleet exits, reported markets editor Rob Willmington.

Only eight containerships, with a combined capacity of 18,000 teu, have been sold for recycling since the start of 2026, according to Lloyd’s List Intelligence data.

The figure is broadly in line with the 20-year low recorded for containership demolition during the first eight months of 2025.

US destroys five Iranian tankers as Middle East Gulf conflict escalates

US forces destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers in the Gulf of Oman last week, prompting swift retaliation from Tehran in a sharp escalation of the six-month-old conflict, reported Lloyd’s list.

The strikes came after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targeted a US Navy warship with ballistic missiles twice over the preceding two days, according to US Central Command. The American warship successfully evaded both attacks and continued patrol operations, with no US personnel harmed, it added.

Iran responded the following day, saying it had launched a ballistic missile attack on a US military base in Jordan and claimed to have attacked 10 ships attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz.