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US Attacks Houthi Anti-Ship Missiles, Vessel Hit in Red Sea
Container ships sail across the Gulf of Suez towards the Red Sea before entering the Suez Canal. Photo: Reuters/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
The US military carried out new strikes in Yemen on Tuesday against anti-ship ballistic missiles in a Houthi-controlled part of the country as a missile struck a Greek-owned vessel in the Red Sea.
Disruptions to Red Sea shipping caused by Houthi attacks will push up prices of consumer goods in Europe in particular, an executive from port and freight operator DP World said as the impact on commerce increased.
The Iran-allied Houthi militia has threatened to expand its attacks to include US ships in response to American and British strikes on its sites in Yemen.
Attacks by the Houthis on ships in the region since November have affected companies and alarmed major powers – an escalation of Israel’s more than three-month-old war with Palestinian Hamas terrorists in Gaza. The Houthis say they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians.
The White House said additional US strikes on Tuesday took out ballistic missiles Houthis were ready to launch, confirming a Reuters story earlier, citing US officials, that a new strike was launched at four anti-ship missiles. The strike had not been previously reported.
“We’re not looking to expand this. The Houthis have a choice to make and they still have time to make the right choice, which is to stop these reckless attacks,” White House spokesman John Kirby said.
Two heads of international banking groups attending the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos said privately that they were worried the crisis might cause inflationary pressures which could ultimately delay or reverse interest rate cuts and jeopardize hopes for a US economic soft landing.
DP World CFO Yuvraj Narayan said he expected disruptions to hit European imports.
“The cost of goods into Europe from Asia will be significantly higher,” Narayan told Reuters at the annual WEF meeting in Davos, the Swiss ski resort.
“European consumers will feel the pain … It will hit developed economies more than it will hit developing economies,” the Dubai-based logistics company’s finance chief added.
War risk insurance premiums for shipments through the Red Sea are rising, insurance sources said on Tuesday.
In Spain, four factories owned by French tire maker Michelin are planning to halt output again this weekend, a further sign of the impact of delays in the delivery of raw materials.
SHIP HIT
A Malta-flagged, Greek-owned bulk carrier was struck by a missile while northbound in the Red Sea 76 nautical miles northwest of the Yemeni port of Saleef, a security firm and two Greek shipping ministry sources said.
Yemen’s Houthis carried out the attack on the ship, the Zografia, using naval missiles, resulting in a “direct hit,” the group’s military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said.
The Zografia was sailing from Vietnam to Israel with 24 crew on board and was empty of cargo when attacked, one of the Greek sources said. “There were no injuries, only material damage,” the source added. It was still sailing but would probably reroute for safety checks.
Underlining concerns, Japanese shipping operator Nippon Yusen, also known as NYK Line, instructed its vessels navigating near the Red Sea to wait in safe waters and is considering route changes, a company spokesperson said.
Shipping giant Maersk, however, sent two container ships through the Red Sea carrying goods for the US military and government.
Container vessels have been pausing or diverting from the Red Sea that leads to the Suez Canal, the fastest freight route from Asia to Europe. Many ships have been forced to circumnavigate South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope instead.
About 12 percent of world shipping traffic accesses the Suez Canal via the Red Sea.
British oil major Shell has suspended all shipments through the Red Sea indefinitely after the US and UK strikes triggered fears of further escalation, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. Shell declined to comment.
Russian tanker group Sovcomflot is also considering alternative routes in case the crisis escalates, TASS news agency reported. Sovcomflot did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
European diplomats said member states of the European Union had given initial backing to creation of a naval mission by Feb. 19 at the latest to help protect ships.
The existing US-led coalition meant to safeguard commercial traffic in the Red Sea is weak because regional powerhouses Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt have not taken part, Yemen’s vice president said on Tuesday.
“This Bab al-Mandab corridor is of interest to the whole world and to the region, so regional intervention is key,” Aidarous al-Zubaidi told Reuters in an interview, referring to the narrow strait at the southern entrance to the Red Sea.
Zubaidi’s separatist Southern Transitional Council is part of an alliance that opposes the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres spoke with Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian on Monday, Guterres’ spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday.
“Regarding the situation in the Red Sea, the Secretary-General reiterated his call to all the parties to avoid any further escalation,” Dujarric said.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister underlined the link between Houthi attacks on commercial ships to the war in Gaza. Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said the kingdom’s priority is finding a path to de-escalation through a ceasefire in Gaza.
The post US Attacks Houthi Anti-Ship Missiles, Vessel Hit in Red Sea first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Trump Hosts Qatari Prime Minister After Israeli Attack in Doha

Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani attends an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council, following an Israeli attack on Hamas leaders in Doha, Qatar, at UN headquarters in New York City, US, Sept. 11, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz
US President Donald Trump held dinner with the Qatari prime minister in New York on Friday, days after US ally Israel attacked Hamas leaders in Doha.
Israel attempted to kill the political leaders of Hamas with an attack in Qatar on Tuesday, a strike that risked derailing US-backed efforts to broker a truce in Gaza and end the nearly two-year-old conflict. The attack was widely condemned in the Middle East and beyond as an act that could escalate tensions in a region already on edge.
Trump expressed annoyance about the strike in a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and sought to assure the Qataris that such attacks would not happen again.
Trump and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani were joined by a top Trump adviser, US special envoy Steve Witkoff.
“Great dinner with POTUS. Just ended,” Qatar’s deputy chief of mission, Hamah Al-Muftah, said on X.
The White House confirmed the dinner had taken place but offered no details.
The session followed an hour-long meeting that al-Thani had at the White House on Friday with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
A source briefed on the meeting said they discussed Qatar’s future as a mediator in the region and defense cooperation in the wake of the Israeli strikes against Hamas in Doha.
Trump said he was unhappy with Israel’s strike, which he described as a unilateral action that did not advance US or Israeli interests.
Washington counts Qatar as a strong Gulf ally. Qatar has been a main mediator in long-running negotiations for a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza, for the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza and for a post-conflict plan for the territory.
Al-Thani blamed Israel on Tuesday for trying to sabotage chances for peace but said Qatar would not be deterred from its role as mediator.
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Trump Urges NATO Countries to Halt Russian Oil Purchases

US President Donald Trump gestures during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, DC, US, Aug. 26, 2025. Photo: Jonathan Ernst via Reuters Connect
i24 News – US President Donald Trump issued a letter to NATO nations on Saturday, impressing upon them to stop purchasing Russian oil and impose major sanctions on the regime of Vladimir Putin to end its war in Ukraine.
“I am ready to do major Sanctions on Russia when all NATO Nations have agreed, and started, to do the same thing, and when all NATO Nations STOP BUYING OIL FROM RUSSIA. As you know, NATO’S commitment to WIN has been far less than 100%, and the purchase of Russian Oil, by some, has been shocking! It greatly weakens your negotiating position, and bargaining power, over Russia,” the message read.
“Anyway, I am ready to ‘go’ when you are. Just say when? I believe that this, plus NATO, as a group, placing 50% to 100% TARIFFS ON CHINA, to be fully withdrawn after the WAR with Russia and Ukraine is ended, will also be of great help in ENDING this deadly, but RIDICULOUS, WAR. China has a strong control, and even grip, over Russia, and these powerful Tariffs will break that grip.”
Trump’s post comes after the recent flight of multiple Russian drones into Poland, widely perceived an escalatory move by Russia as it was entering the airspace of a NATO ally. Poland intercepted the drones, yet Trump played down the severity of the incident and Russia’s motives by saying it “could have been a mistake.”
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Netanyahu Says Getting Rid of Hamas Chiefs in Qatar Would Remove Main Obstacle to Gaza Deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the US Independence Day reception, known as the annual “Fourth of July” celebration, hosted by Newsmax, in Jerusalem, Aug. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun/Pool
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday that getting rid of Hamas chiefs living in Qatar would remove the main obstacle to releasing all hostages and ending the war in Gaza.
Israel on Tuesday targeted the Hamas leadership in Doha.