German Frigate Quits Red Sea Mission Day After Houthis Offer EU Ships Safe Passage

Two separate NATO country-led coalitions were created to try to blunt the Houthis’ missile and drone capabilities and restore a semblance of maritime security in the Red Sea for Israeli and Western commercial shipping.

The Hessen, a German Navy frigate deployed to the Red Sea in late February to take part in Operation Aspides – the European Union-led mission to protect regional shipping against attacks by Yemen’s Houthi militias, completed its mission and departed from the region early Saturday morning.

In a statement, the Bundeswehr said the 143-meter-long anti-air and anti-ship missile-equipped warship with a 240-person crew and sophisticated long-range radar onboard was heading back to Germany after spending nearly eight weeks escorting 27 merchant ships (the equivalent of about one commercial vessel every two days).

The Hessen is the latest warship from two separate Western coalitions (the EU’s Operation Aspides and the US-UK Operation Prosperity Guardian) to quit the Red Sea in recent months, with its departure coming one day after an announcement by the Yemeni militia that EU commercial ships wouldn’t be targeted, so long as they aren’t affiliated with Israel.

Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi urged European countries on Thursday to withdraw their “military assets” from the Red Sea, saying “there is no danger to the navigation of European countries which are not heading towards the Israeli enemy, so they can pass safely.”

“We tell the Europeans that it is in your interest to withdraw your [military] units that cost you a lot and involve you in dangers and skirmishes for the benefit of the United States,” al-Houthi said, promising European countries coordination with Yemen to secure safe passage for commercial cargoes “without being targeted.”

Separately this week, Houthi political bureau member Hizam al-Assad told Sputnik Arabic that the militia would “continue to target American and British ships as a legitimate and guaranteed right to respond to the American-British attacks on Yemen.”

During its deployment, the Hessen saw action intercepting a Houthi missile on April 6. Before that, on March 21, the Bundeswehr reported that the ship had destroyed an unmanned sea vehicle launched by the militia. The Bundeswehr said in its statement Saturday that the ship was used to “successfully eliminate” Houthi missiles and drones on four occasions total.

The Houthis typically force American, British, and European warships to expend sophisticated missiles worth millions of dollars more to destroy what are mostly simple aerial and naval drones that cost the Yemeni militia thousands of dollars to manufacture. Since January, the US and the UK have attempted to degrade Houthi capabilities through a series of air and missile strikes inside Yemen. The EU chose not to participate in these strikes, emphasizing the “purely defensive” nature of Operation Aspides.

The Hessen was the only German warship taking part in the EU-led Red Sea operation, which also involves an Italian destroyer and two frigates, two frigates from France, and one apiece from Belgium and Greece.

The German frigate was said to have crisscrossed more than 11,000 km in the Red Sea during its stay in the region, and is the latest NATO warship to leave the region after a relatively short deployment. In February, a British destroyer left the Red Sea for reequip and refit after engaging wave after wave of Houthi missiles. US sailors and commanders have reported a state of near exhaustion after spending months fending off Houthi strikes and launching attacks of their own.

The militia, which initially targeted only ships it believed were Israeli-owned, tied, or destined, ramped up its campaign to target US and British commercial shipping after the two countries began attacks inside Yemen in January. Abdul Malik al-Houthi said in early April that some 37 Yemenis had been killed and 30 wounded as a result of “British-American aggression” in 424 separate strikes.

Al-Houthi also indicated that since November, the militia has fired over 120 ballistic and cruise missiles and drones, and targeted of 90 ships, including 86 vessels affiliated with Israel, the US or the UK.

The Houthis launched their partial blockade of the Red Sea in solidarity with Gaza as part of a campaign which has also included missile and drone attacks targeting Israel. The militia has indicated that it would stop its campaign if Israel halts its aggression against the Palestinians.

The Houthi campaign has caused significant economic losses for Israel, and for global shipping companies, which have chosen to avoid the Red Sea – the shortest shipping route between Europe and Asia, in favor of the long way around Africa – adding weeks of time and tens of billions of dollars to transportation costs.