Regional politics and well-armed Houthi adversaries in Yemen are among the challenges facing U.S.-led naval force
Hours after the U.S. announced a multinational task force to protect commercial traffic through the Red Sea, shipping giant A.P. Moller-Maersk said it would send its vessels around the Cape of Good Hope in southern Africa instead.
The message was clear: Jitters remain about a possible snarl to one of the world’s most crucial trade routes.
Attacks on merchant vessels by Houthi forces in Yemen, a militia group backed by Iran, continued this week—including two on Monday. The attacks have mostly taken place near the southern end of the Red Sea, called Bab el-Mandeb, or the Gate of Tears.
