Ship captains contact Houthis over passage through strait — Jerusalem Post
Captains of ships planning to pass through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait near Yemen are sending emails to the Houthis to obtain assurances of safe transit. This was reported by The Jerusalem Post, citing The Wall Street Journal.
Appeals to the coordination center
The emails are sent to the Humanitarian Operations Coordination Center, an administrative structure established by the Houthis in early 2024. The center reviews requests and distributes messages about the group’s actions.
According to the WSJ, in the emails, vessels state that neither the ship nor its crew have ties to Israel, the United States, or the United Kingdom. They also provide an approximate sailing schedule and assure that they will comply with the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea.
According to the publication, if the Houthis respond to requests, they usually do so within the following 24 hours. The WSJ also reports that after the Houthis announced a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia in July, shipping companies began using this communication channel to obtain safety assurances.
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Permission for a Chinese container ship
In one case, the Houthis granted the Chinese container ship Zhong Cheng Chang Ling permission to pass for one week. In a letter, the vessel was instructed to keep its Automatic Identification System, AIS, switched on, which transmits data on the ship’s identity, location, speed, and destination.
The container ship was also instructed to keep VHF Channel 16 operational, a maritime radio frequency designated for international distress signals. The letter included the HOCC hotline number and an invitation to subscribe to the center’s electronic notification service.
International maritime bodies officially advise vessels not to contact or register with the HOCC, the WSJ notes. At the same time, the captain of Zhong Cheng Chang Ling told the publication that the ship’s management had instructed him to contact the Houthis as an additional precaution.
