Hapag-Lloyd container ship caught fire! Maersk&Hapag-Lloyd urgently suspend Red Sea routes

ICS urgently calls on influential countries in the Red Sea and Arabian Sea to work together to stop Houthi armed attacks on sailors and merchant ships.

After the Maersk container ship was attacked by Yemeni Houthi armed missiles in the Red Sea, on December 15, the container ship "Al Jasrah" owned by Hapag-Lloyd was also attacked in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait connecting the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea. A fire broke out on the deck and a container fell into the water, but no crew members were injured.

The "Al Jasrah" that was attacked had a container capacity of 15,000 TEU and was operating on the Asia-Mediterranean route MD2. It is reported that the ship has nothing to do with Israel, and the MD2 route does not call at Israeli ports.

A spokesman for Hapag-Lloyd stressed: "We will take additional measures to ensure the safety of our crews and will suspend all routes through the Red Sea this weekend until next Monday, after which we will make further decisions."

Maersk also made the same decision.

A Maersk spokesperson said: "Following the attacks on multiple container ships, including the Maersk Gibraltar, we have asked all Maersk ships in the area that must transit the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to suspend sailing until further notice."

The spokesperson further said: "Ensuring the safety of crew members is the most important thing. The current problem cannot be solved by the shipping industry alone. We urge the international community to unite to quickly find a solution and control the situation."

In view of the frequent attacks on merchant ships by the Houthi armed forces in Yemen, the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) urgently calls on influential countries in the Red Sea and Arabian Sea regions to work together to stop the Houthi armed forces from attacking seafarers and merchant ships, and to ease the current threat to international shipping. serious threat to trade.

ICS said the industry is extremely concerned about these attacks on ships, and some ships have detoured around the Cape of Good Hope to avoid attacks, which increases the cost and shipping time of global trade.

Peter Sand, chief analyst at Xeneta, analyzed that all ships passing through the Suez Canal must pass through the Red Sea. If attacks on commercial ships continue, it may have serious consequences for the global supply chain.

"I do not think the Suez Canal will be closed, but if the situation escalates further, this possibility cannot be ruled out. Even if the Suez Canal is closed for only a few days, the global supply chain will be thrown into chaos, and the shipping industry will suffer an unprecedented hit." He warned .