Through its network of terrorist proxies, the Iranian regime has again made clear its willingness to disrupt international maritime trade.

According to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), the latest evidence came last Friday when the Iran-backed Houthi terrorists in Yemen launched missile strikes against a Palau-flagged cargo ship in the Red Sea.

The crew of the “Verbena” were forced to evacuate as the ship caught fire and began sinking around 98 nautical miles east of Yemen’s port city of Aden. US Central Command reports that the brazen Houthi attack severely injured one of the sailors.

In a statement on Telegram, the Houthi terrorists claimed their disruption campaign against the West so far has included sinking one vessel, seizing another, and killing three crewmembers. They defended their unprovoked attacks by arguing it was motivated by “solidarity” with Arabs in Gaza.

However, the timing of the Houthis’ escalating their at-sea aggression since Hamas’ massacre against Israel on October 7 points to direct orders from their Iranian patrons.

Just weeks before the first Houthi ship attack in November, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei urged Arab nations to blockade Israel’s trade routes in a speech laced with his trademark antisemitic rhetoric.

Unfortunately, the Houthis’ persistent efforts to sow chaos along the Red Sea’s shipping lanes is just the latest chapter in the Iranian regime’s lengthy campaign to gain a stranglehold on strategic chokepoints for global oil shipments.

During the Gulf War (1990-1991), Iranian forces routinely targeted US-backed Kuwaiti oil tankers and laid mines in the Persian Gulf during Operation Earnest Will. Tensions reignited in 2019 when Iran began seizing foreign tankers and using naval mines, temporarily shutting down the critical Strait of Hormuz which carried approximately 30% of the world’s traded oil.

Despite airstrikes against Houthi targets by the US and Britain since January, the terrorist group has largely continued carrying out Iran’s malign bidding unabated.