Diplomacy underway to allow Houthis a ‘climbdown’ from attacks: US official

Lenderking said the longer the Houthi attacks persisted, the higher the danger of renewed fighting in Yemen and disruptions to food and medicine shipments needed in Yemen and Gaza.

The attacks have disrupted maritime trade in one of the world’s busiest sea corridors, forcing ships to divert to the Cape of Good Hope, raising insurance rates and driving up shipping costs, he said.

Lenderking said he hopes to hold talks on preserving a roadmap to end the war in Yemen worked out by the Houthis and Saudi Arabia, which intervened on behalf of the internationally recognized government in 2015.

While saying there was no basis for the Houthis to link their attacks to the Israel-Hamas conflict, Lenderking said: “We need to see serious de-escalation in Gaza.”