According to Iranian local media, Tehran’s Alborz warship has crossed the Red Sea through the vital Bab al-Mandeb Strait at an occasion when hostilities over the vital waterway are running high. According to the sources on Monday, “the Alborz destroyer reached the Red Sea… by going via the Bab al-Mandeb” waterway at the southern edge of the Red Sea, joining with the Gulf of Aden in the Indian Ocean.”
Furthermore, it stated that since 15 years ago, Iran’s naval forces have been conducting operations in the region “to secure shipping routes and combat pirates, among other functions.”
Earlier in December, 2023, the Houthi group launched a barrage of missile and drone assaults against merchant boats, forcing shipping firms to halt transit through the increasingly heavily militarized region. In response, the United States established an international naval task force for the Red Sea.
The Houthis maintain that the strikes were carried out in support of the Palestinian people in the beleaguered Gaza Strip. Israel has been bombarding the area for multiple months. The Red Sea offers a detour around Africa through the Suez Canal, and 12 percent of world traffic goes through it, based on the data by the International Chamber of Shipping.
The Iranian story was released the day after Houthi movement claimed ten militants had been killed when US Navy helicopters opened fire on them as they attempted to hijack a cargo ship.
It also coincides with the murder of Sayyed Razi Mousavi, a senior commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps in Syria, by an Israeli air raid outside Syrian capital.
Iranian Warship in the Region
Iran deploying a vessel to the area, according to overserves and commentators is not a “new” occurrence. Iranian vessel movements had occurred from time to time in this region. As with many other countries, Iranian ships are free to navigate these waters. More and more warships, including US and British vessels, are already sailing in the area.
Iranian official IRNA news outlet announced that Iran‘s chief security officer, met with the head of the Houthi negotiations, Muhammad Abdulsalam, yesterday. The talk’s location and timing are unknown, but Ahmadian was described by Iranian media as stating Tehran commended the Houthis for facing up to Zionists and backing the Palestinian people.
Since Israel began its offensive on Gaza in response to the Hamas strikes on October 7, hostilities in the region have escalated.
In order “to deter threats to freedom of navigation in the Red Sea,” the United Kingdom was “willing to take direct action” against the Houthis, according to British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps. Red Sea tensions were discussed by British Foreign Secretary and his Iranian counterpart a few days ago.
As a declaration by Iranian foreign ministry clarifies, Amir Abdollahian criticized the “double standards” of some Western nations, stating that the Gaza conflict was a sign that the “Israeli authority cannot be permitted… to set the whole region on fire.”
