The ongoing Red Sea Crisis started in October 19, 2023, when US Navy Destroyer, the USS Carney intercepted three land-attack cruise missiles and several drones heading towards Israel launched by Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
On November 19, 2023, Bahamas-flagged ship, Galaxy Leader, was hijacked by Houthi rebels using a military helicopter and sailed to Hodediah, Yemen. The whereabouts of the 25-member crew is currently unknown.
Map of Red Sea region
On December 3, 2023, the Carney and civilian-owned commercial ships were attacked in international waters in the southern Red Sea, with anti-ship ballistic missiles fired from Yemen. Missiles struck three commercial ships, while Carney shot down three drones in self-defence during the hours-long assault.
The Shia-militia has since launched numerous attacks against vessels in the Red Sea, demanding a ceasefire in the Israel–Hamas war and an end to the blockade of the Gaza Strip. The use of sophisticated technology like misses and helicopters by the Houthi rebels have threatened the Freedom of Navigation through the Red Sea, a major maritime causeway that has huge repercussions to global trade and regional peace. Fearing threats, shipping companies have re-routed their vessels around Africa, incurring massive fuel costs.
On December 18, 2023, US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin announced the formation of an international maritime security force aimed at ending the blockade and countering threats by the Houthi forces against international maritime commerce in the Red Sea and wider region. The coalition currently has more than 20 members including Sri Lanka.
I spoke to Captain Gayan Wickramasuriya, Director of Naval Media, on Sri Lanka’s Navy part in Operation Prosperity Guardian; the US-led military operation responding to attacks on shipping in the Red Sea.
Overview
Map of Yemen
Sri Lanka joined the Combine Maritime Force (CMF) of 41 nations last year, Captain Wickramasuriya said. “CMF is made of five task forces; TF – 150 overseas security in the Gulf of Oman and Indian Ocean, TF – 151 counters piracy in the Gulf of Aden and off the Somalian Coast, TF – 152 patrols the Arabian Gulf and TF – 153 patrols the Red Sea. TF – 154 is for training”.
Operation
Prosperity Guardian was launched with the TF – 153 and other CMF task forces due to the Houthi rebel threat.
Sri Lanka lies on the apex of the busy sea lane which crosses the Indian Ocean. “A lot of shipping companies started re-routing their ships around Africa when the Red Sea attacks started. But when ships go around Africa, they bypass Sri Lanka, which is a problem. This is why President Ranil Wickremesinghe promptly suggested that we deploy a Navy ship to the area,” he said.
On February 7, 2023, the SLNS Gajabahu set sail from Colombo, linking up with TF – 150 on February 9. “We met the task force, established communications and coordinates of the demarcated patrolling area,” he said adding that the Gajabahu was on patrol till February 26.
Although the phrase ‘Red Sea operation’ is used quite liberally, the Red Sea is just one area of the operation and other tasks forces are in charge of other areas close to the Red Sea. “The SLNS Gajabahu is not deployed in the Red Sea, instead the patrols are restricted to the Gulf of Oman against surface threats,” Captain Wickramasuriya clarified.
SLNS Gajabahu
Houthi rebels hijacking
Galaxy Leader
Named after the ancient warrior king, the SLNS Gajabahu was formerly the United States Coast Guard Cutter (USCG) Sherman. The vessel transferred to the Sri Lanka Navy in August 2018. The ship is equipped with 76mm gun, six .50 calibre machine guns, dual 23mm cannon and MK 29 fire control system. “It’s one of the hardiest and capable ships in our fleet,” Captain Wickramasuriya said adding that the Gajabahu is capable of being deployed for long periods at sea.
(Fun fact – the Gajabahu, in its previous incarnation as the Sherman, made an appearance in the 2005 film ‘Yours Mine and Ours’.)
There is a 100-member crew aboard the Gajabahu and the patrols have yielded in other positive results. The Navy said that its vessel intercepted a trawler in the Arabian Sea on February 20 and seized 128g of heroin; the rest of the drugs had been thrown overboard however. Lot of drug trafficking takes place in the high seas, Captain Wickramasuriya said. “The seized drugs were handed over to the international policing authorities according to the jurisdiction of international waters. We have learned a lot like information sharing and cooperation, this operation is in our interests because there is also fleet of 500 Sri Lankan fishing boats in the Indian Ocean,”
Sri Lanka’s obligations
Our nation is a signatory of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) – a convention setting out rules relating to the world’s oceans and seas.
Recently the public has been questioning why a Sri Lankan vessel has been deployed to this troubled region. The simple answer is that we are obliged under the conventions we have signed. “We are bound to ensure the Freedom of Navigation, safety of navigation, security of communication, we are obliged to counter threats, help in search and rescue and assist multilateral initiatives,” the Navy captain clarified while saying that the action taken in this operation is in no way a support of Israel or against Yemen.
“The Sri Lankan Navy is not deployed in the Red Sea,” he reiterated.
The Red Sea crisis affects global trade, which affects Sri Lanka due to its strategic location in the Indian Ocean. This is also the first time that the Sri Lanka Navy is taking part in such a multilateral effort and it’s a good exposure for us, he said.
Global piracy
I also asked the Navy about the extent of sea piracy in the world and they say that the Horn of Africa is still the number one hotspot for pirates. “There are groups that operate in the Gulf of Guinea in West Africa like Boko Haram and there are small raiding parties in the Straits of Malacca, but the Gulf of Aden is the most dangerous,” he said.
The Houthis, he says, don’t venture out into open waters like the Somali pirates.
“The Somali pirates are brazen and attack ships miles off at sea, but the Houthis target vessels close to the coast”. The Houthi’s are also using ship tracking services online to learn more about the payload and nationality of vessels.
He also said the Houthis have sophisticated missiles and drones, and that the Red Sea is patrolled by navies more equipped against those threats.
Drug runners apprehended by SLNS Gajabahu on February 20, 2024
“This area of the Indian Ocean is also a major artery for drug trafficking,” he said.
The threats in the Red Sea haven’t been limited to surface-level attacks. Last week, undersea cables belonging to four major telecommunications companies had been cut causing disruption to communications networks in the Middle East.
On Monday (4), Hong Kong telecoms company HGC Global Communication estimated that 25 percent of traffic between Asia and Europe as well the Middle East had been impacted. The damage to cables in the Red Sea comes weeks after the official Yemeni Government warned of the possibility that Houthi rebels would target the cables. The militant group, however, denied the allegations.
On Thursday (7), the Sri Lanka Navy confirmed that two Sri Lankan crew members were rescued by the Indian warship INS Kolkata from the cargo ship ‘True Confidence’ following an attack by Houthi rebels in the Gulf of Aden. One of the Sri Lankan nationals rescued sustained injuries during the attack.
The attack, which occurred about 50 nautical miles off the Port of Aden, resulted in the death of three seafarers, including two Filipinos and one Vietnamese. The remaining crew, along with three armed guards, were evacuated by the Indian navy to Djibouti for medical treatment. The owners and managers of the vessel expressed condolences to the families of the deceased and stated that salvage arrangements are being made as the vessel drifts away from land.
