The recent attack on the civilian-boarded ship Swift, by Houthi rebels and forces of former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah, is a blatant violation of international laws and norms. It is new evidence of the threat these militant groups pose to regional security and international stability.
Swift was a ship for humanitarian aid and transport of injured people from Yemen. It is a non-military civilian ship that does not operate under any cover or military protection whatsoever. It has crossed the international waterway of Bab al-Mandab like any other ship for civilian relief. The fact that it is from the United Arab Emirates or carries its flag does not justify targeting it by rebel militias, given that its purpose was solely humanitarian.
Targeting cargo ships passing through international sea routes, subject to laws on international waters, constitutes a case of blatant violation of international law. In such case, the international community and major powers concerned with maritime security and freedom of navigation in the international corridors need to take a stance.
The gravity of the assault has many connotations related to security and stability in a very sensitive navigation area. The Houthi militia committed a criminal act of piracy as they attacked a non-military ship destined to humanitarian aid and transport of injured civilians.
Assaulting the ship was a mere attempt to ‘mediatize’ a fictional victory by the Houthis claiming they took down an ‘Emirati battleship’. But hours later, the militants were disillusioned as facts about the ship, with a long history of humanitarian relief, were revealed.
Over the past months, the ship has transported hundreds of tons of aid material and hundreds of injured Yemeni civilians to get medical care. It was also confirmed that the multi-national crew operating the ship includes people of Indian, Ukrainian, Egyptian, Lithuanian, Filipino and Jordanian nationalities. They received medical care in the UAE after the attack.
The silence of the international community towards such practices makes it possible for the situation in this sensitive zone to escalate, threatening freedom of navigation there. The world is still paying the price of its reluctance to counter the danger of piracy in the Bab al-Mandab strait and the shores of Somalia, only to name a few.
The plans of the Houthi-Saleh alliance to turn the international waters around the shores of Yemen into a source of immediate threat to the civilian ship cannot be overlooked. The ex-president of Yemen Ali Abdullah Saleh knows that by playing the card of international waters, he will pressure the international community into negotiations. For the Houthis to have a free hand in this particular maritime zone poses a threat of further piracy acts
Indeed, the coast of Mocha was the scene of a crime. The victim was not only the Swift ship, but also international laws and conventions regulating maritime navigation in international waters, and hundreds of Yemenis who were waiting to be transferred for medical care.
The world has been through several painful experiences due to the international community’s passive reaction to assaults on international law. The silence about the attack on the UAE ship is giving the green light for more crimes of such a scale.
