U.S. establishes new security initiative to protect Red Sea shipping

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Monday announced the creation of Operation Prosperity Guardian. The operation mobilizes forces from 10 countries, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Norway, and Spain, to boost the security of the southern Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden and to ensure freedom of navigation.

Why does Red Sea shipping need protection? The Red Sea is a central commercial shipping corridor. The U.S. government says Houthi rebels based in Yemen have been attacking commercial ships in the Red Sea for the past month. The rebels say the attacks are in retaliation for Israel’s war against the terror group Hamas in Gaza, and that they are only attacking ships that have a connection to Israel. The attacks have not resulted in any fatalities so far, but some major shipping companies have been rerouting around Africa to avoid the area.

Dig deeper: Read Marc LiVecche’s column in WORLD Opinions on the message the U.S. should send to Iran.