Iranian Warship Moves Into Red Sea as Regional Tensions Rise

An Iranian warship entered the Red Sea through the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Monday, Iran’s Tasnim news agency reported.

The movement of the Iranian destroyer Alborz comes at a time of heightened tensions over the strategic waterway and one day after 10 Yemeni Houthi fighters were reportedly killed when US Navy helicopters fired upon them as they attempted to board a cargo ship off the coast of Yemen.

Tasnim did not give any reason for the destroyer’s movement, but said Iran’s fleet had been operating in the area since 2009 “to secure shipping lanes, [and] repel pirates, among other purposes.”

Since the Israel-Hamas war began on Oct. 7, the Iranian-backed Houthis have launched a flurry of drone and missile attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea, claiming that the attacks are in support of the Palestinians.

Some 12% of global trade usually passes through the Red Sea on the way to and from the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea, a much shorter and cheaper route than traveling around Africa. In early December, the United States set up a multinational naval task force to protect vessels in the Red Sea, but shipping companies have largely suspended passage there.

Separately, Iranian reports said the country’s security chief, Ali Akbar Ahmadian, held a meeting with top Houthi negotiator Mohammad Abdulsalam and praised the Houthis for supporting the Palestinians and standing up to Israel.