Houthis seized and attacked ships heading towards Israel in the Red Sea (Reuters)

The US Central Command announced that the missile destroyer Karni shot down 14 drones launched by the Houthi Ansar Allah in Yemen in the Red Sea, and while a Houthi spokesman said talks were under way with "international parties" regarding their military operations, more shipping companies announced the suspension of services in the Red Sea.

"In the early morning hours of Saturday, a US guided missile destroyer operating in the Red Sea succeeded in engaging 14 unmanned air systems launched as a wave of drones from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen," the US command said in a statement.

"The air systems were assessed as suicide attack drones and shot down without any damage to ships in the area or reported casualties. Regional partners in the Red Sea have been alerted to the threat."

This comes at a time when Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdul Salam confirmed that his group has begun talks with international parties, which he did not name, to stop the escalation mediated by the Sultanate of Oman, noting that the Houthis will continue to target Israeli ships and ships heading to Israel until the aggression is stopped, the siege on Gaza is lifted, and humanitarian aid flows continuously to the Strip.

Abdul Salam said that any real steps that respond to the humanitarian situation in Palestine and Gaza by introducing food and medicine would contribute to reducing the escalation, according to the statement.

The Houthis also did not comment on the announcement by the US Central Command that they had shot down their drones.

Companies suspend transit through the Red Sea

As ships bound for Israel continue to be attacked in the Red Sea, Italian-Swiss shipping company MSC announced it was suspending transit of its ships in the Red Sea after being attacked on Friday, in a move similar to other shipping groups.

The company said in a statement that its ships would not use the Suez Canal "until it is safe to pass through the Red Sea," and that the attack did not result in the injury of any of its crew members, and did not add any further information about the nature of the attack.

French shipping group CMA and CGM also announced that it had temporarily halted all container shipments across the Red Sea following attacks on commercial vessels in the region.

The group said in a statement that the situation is deteriorating further and that safety concerns are growing, adding that it has instructed all container ships scheduled to pass through the Red Sea to reach safe areas, and to suspend their journey until further notice.

This came after the Danish Maersk Group and the German Hapag-Lloyd announced yesterday the suspension of the transit of their container ships in the Red Sea.

Claim for the protection of maritime transport

For its part, the Association of German Shipping Companies called for the formation of an international military coalition to protect civilian shipping in the Red Sea, following the attack on a German cargo ship.

The association's chief executive described the move as necessary to protect commercial cargo ships and crew members, noting that there is a deployment of US, French and British navy ships in the region.

The head of the defence committee in the German parliament had earlier expressed support for a possible involvement of the German navy in protecting freedom of shipping in the Red Sea.

The Houthis announced earlier today the targeting of the city of Eilat on the Red Sea with drones, as part of pressure on Israel to stop its aggression on the Gaza Strip.

British Defence Secretary Grant Shapps also said today that his navy's HMS Diamond warship shot down a suspected attack drone targeting commercial cargo ships in the Red Sea.

Source : Al Jazeera + Agencies