Insurance Underwriters Adding Pressure to Shippers Through the Red Sea to Disavow US, UK, Israel Connections

With increasing numbers of Houthi attacks and with the US-led Operation Prosperity Guardian not successfully reestablishing security for shipping in the Red Sea, insurance underwriters are increasingly demanding companies disavow connections to the US, UK, or Israel, according to reporting by maritime news site Splash247 and Bloomberg.

Splash247 further reports that while it was first container ships that began to abandon the Red Sea route, oil tankers are now following suit, with companies such as Shell and BP staying away.

Egypt also faces a serious hit to its revenues from transit through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, with shipping down 30% in the first 11 days of January with further declines in sight.