Islamic Iran is pulling the strings and its local stooges are jumping to them threatening global commerce. But beyond Hamas terrorists in Gaza, or Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, a new seaborne threat has emerged in the Red Sea, a vital waterway connecting the Mediterranean Sea with the Indian Ocean. The Houthi militants, a Yemeni-based Islamic militia have taken their fight from the mountainous lands of the Arabian Peninsula to the Red Sea, which serves as a key commercial conduit for merchant ships sailing between Europe and East Asia. Officially the Houthis are involved in a decade-long civil war with Yemen’s central government, and among other things have caused wider poverty and population dislocation in their already poor country. The current attacks on and seizing of ships recall memories of the Somali pirate threat of a decade ago. But the Houthis have upped the ante with drones and long-range missile attacks, supplied by Iran, to harass both merchant vessels and ships of the U.S. Navy and its allies escorting them. The armed militants seized the Japanese-operated cargo vessel Galaxy Leader in November and still hold the ship and its crew hostage. The Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, were declared a terror organization by the U.S. State Department until President Biden removed them from the nefarious status during the first weeks of his administration. The Red Sea resembles a giant bottle with two necks; an entrance on the northern top at the Suez Canal controlled by Egypt and the exit in the southern Bab El-Mandeb Straits bordering lawless Yemen. In fact, six different countries surround the Red Sea among them Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti, Egypt and Yemen. Approximately 15 percent of international trade transits through the Red Sea; rerouting vessels around South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope adds at least an additional 10-day journey, thus increasing shipping costs and straining supply chains. Top merchant shipping companies such as Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd have halted Red Sea transits. Significantly the U.S. Navy as well as France maintain a base in nearby Djibouti so Navy resources while stretched are not remote to the strategic region. More ominously China also has a military base in Djibouti not far from the Western installations. Currently, the Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group is on station off the coast of Yemen, supported by other ships such as the guided-missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea and guided-missile destroyer USS Gravely. The Aircraft Carrier Strike Group packs a powerful punch with its Naval Air Squadrons. Recently when the American ships have come under attack from the land-based Houthis, they have responded in self-defense; a U.S. ship sank three Houthi craft killing 10 militants. In mid-December, the destroyer USS Carney shot down 14 Houthi-launched unmanned aerial vehicles in the Red Sea. In a separate development in adjoining waters, U.S. Naval Institute News reports that “Indian Navy commandos secured the hijacked Liberian-flagged Lila Norfolk last week after a 24-hour confrontation off the Somali Coast in the Arabian Sea. This swift response comes as New Delhi reinforces its presence in the area, surging ships and aircraft to deter attacks on international shipping in the Western Indian Ocean Region.” Currently, the U.S. Navy expends significant resources to shoot down missiles and drones. According to Central Command, the Houthis have made 23 attacks on targets in the Red Sea since Dec. 19. The U.N. Security Council met to consider the current crisis but with little tangible effect. American deputy Ambassador Christopher Lu stated, “We also know that Iran has been deeply involved in planning operations against commercial vessels in the Red Sea.” Amb. Lu added, that current