the suez canal

The Greek frigate "Hydra" is set to join the European naval mission "Operation Aspides" on Friday, following its transit through the Suez Canal on Sunday, with the aim of enhancing defense against Houthi threats in the Red Sea.

A ship attacked by Yemen's Houthi rebels has sunk in the Red Sea after days of taking on water, officials have said, the first vessel to be fully destroyed as part of their campaign over Israel's war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The Hydra frigate of the Hellenic Navy set sail on Monday night from Salamina to the Naval Station of Crete in Souda from where it will head to the Red Sea, in the framework of the Aspides (Shield) operation of the European Union to protect safe navigation to and from the Suez Canal.

Greece-headquartered Star Bulk will halt sailings through the Red Sea after Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis attacked two of its ships in recent days, the group's CEO said.

The Houthis have targeted commercial vessels with drones and missiles in the Red Sea since mid-November in what they describe as acts of solidarity with Palestinians against Israel in the Gaza war.

The IMF and World Bank warned on Monday that the Gaza war and the related attacks on shipping though the Red Sea pose threats to the global economy.

The Israel-Hamas war raging since October has already hit the Middle East and North Africa region's economy, said the International Monetary Fund's managing director Kristalina Georgieva.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is working "tirelessly" to solve the Red Sea crisis, which is severely disrupting the global transport of goods, its head Arsenio Dominguez told AFP.

The leader of Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis has said that the group will further escalate if the Israeli attack on Gaza does not stop.

The Houthis, who control Yemen's capital and most populous areas, have attacked international shipping in the Red Sea since November in what they say is solidarity with Palestinians, drawing US and British retaliatory strikes since last month.

Problems in the Red Sea are estimated to cost an additional $2 billion to Türkiye as personnel costs and prices of certain goods, especially electronic goods, are rising due to the Houthi attacks on ships in the waterway, according to the business associations.

Amidst the geopolitical repercussions of ongoing war in Ukraine, the Eurasian connectivity is again in focus. It does not only fall on the consideration of Arctic pathways (as a cheaper and increasingly reliable way to connect norther/Atlantic flank of Europe with the Far East and other premium production spots of Asia).

The U.N. trade body has sounded an alarm that global trade is being disrupted by attacks in the Red Sea, the war in Ukraine, and low water levels in the Panama Canal.

Jan Hoffmann, a trade expert at UNCTAD, warned that shipping costs have already surged and energy and food costs are being affected, raising inflation risks.