The Iranian-backed Houthi rebels today launched a series of drone and missile attacks targeting ships in the Red Sea, saying they wanted to put pressure on Israel over its devastating war with the Palestinian Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip.

Following the attacks, several major shipping companies suspended traffic through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, through which 40 percent of international trade passes, until safety of navigation is guaranteed. Among these companies are Danish Maersk, German Hapag-Lloyd, French CMA CGM, and Italian-Swiss MSC.

The latest announcements were issued on Monday by British Petroleum (BP), which temporarily suspended the transit of all its ships “due to the deteriorating security situation for maritime transport in the Red Sea.”

In the afternoon, Frontline, the world's fourth largest giant tanker company with its headquarters in Limassol, Cyprus, said it would avoid transit through the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

A statement issued by the "Yemeni Armed Forces" affiliated with the Houthis said that they "carried out a qualitative operation against two ships linked to the Zionist entity. The first was the Swan Atlantic ship, loaded with oil, and the other was the MSC Clara ship, carrying containers. They were targeted by two seaplanes."

The statement said, "The operation to target the two ships came after their crews refused to respond to calls from the Yemeni naval forces."

The Norwegian ship M/V Swan Atlantic was hit on Monday by an “unidentified object” in the Red Sea, according to the company that owns Inventor Chemical Tankers, which said in a statement, “Fortunately, the Indian crew members were not harmed, and the ship was damaged.” According to them, it caused limited damage,” noting that the tanker, which set off from France towards Reunion Island, has no connection to Israel.

The ship "M/V Swan Atlantic" is now under the protection of the US Navy.

There is currently no information available about the second ship whose name was mentioned in the statement issued by Sanaa.

The US military said that an American destroyer shot down 14 drones on Saturday in the Red Sea that were launched from areas controlled by the Houthis in Yemen. The UK government said one of its destroyers also shot down a suspected attack drone in the area.

Earlier, two shipping agencies said they detected what appeared to be an explosion Monday on a major shipping route off Yemen. This was reported as US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin arrived in Bahrain as part of a tour in the Middle East to discuss, especially maritime security. The US Department of Defense stated at the end of the week in a statement that he would discuss in Manama “the efforts of the United States to convene multilateral alliances to respond to aggression at sea.” Which threatens maritime transport and the global economy.”

On Saturday, Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdul Salam announced Omani mediation to protect the waterway. He said on the "X" website that discussions are underway "under the auspices of our brothers in the Sultanate of Oman... with a number of international bodies regarding operations in the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea."

The Houthis confirmed in their statement on Monday that they would not hesitate “to target any ship that violates what was stated” in their previous statements in which they warned of preventing “all ships heading to Israeli ports of any nationality from navigating in the Arab and Red Seas until they bring in what our steadfast brothers need.” In the Gaza Strip, there is water and medicine.”