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Suez Canal Chief: Red Sea Crisis Did Not Create Sustainable Route to Replace Canal

Osama Rabie, Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority, speaks during an interview with Reuters in his office in the city of Ismailia, Egypt April 6, 2021. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany/File Photo
Osama Rabie, Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority, speaks during an interview with Reuters in his office in the city of Ismailia, Egypt April 6, 2021. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany/File Photo
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Suez Canal Chief: Red Sea Crisis Did Not Create Sustainable Route to Replace Canal

Osama Rabie, Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority, speaks during an interview with Reuters in his office in the city of Ismailia, Egypt April 6, 2021. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany/File Photo
Osama Rabie, Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority, speaks during an interview with Reuters in his office in the city of Ismailia, Egypt April 6, 2021. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany/File Photo

Suez Canal Authority Chairman Osama Rabie said on Wednesday that the Red Sea crisis did not create a sustainable route to replace the canal.

He also said that there were positive indicators for the return of stability in the region.

Iran-backed Houthi militants have attacked vessels in the Red Sea area since November 2023, disrupting global shipping lanes by forcing vessels to avoid the nearby Suez Canal and reroute trade around Africa, raising the costs for insurers.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said in December the disruption cost Egypt around $7 billion in revenue from the Suez Canal in 2024, Reuters reported.

That's a drop of more than 60% from its revenue a year before from the canal, Sisi said.

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US Warplanes Carry Out 17 Strikes in Yemen 

A Yemeni man inspects the damage in the Al-Rasul Al-Aazam cancer and oncology hospital's unfinished building, a day after it was hit in a US strike in Yemen's northern Saada province on March 25, 2025. (AFP)
A Yemeni man inspects the damage in the Al-Rasul Al-Aazam cancer and oncology hospital's unfinished building, a day after it was hit in a US strike in Yemen's northern Saada province on March 25, 2025. (AFP)
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US Warplanes Carry Out 17 Strikes in Yemen 

A Yemeni man inspects the damage in the Al-Rasul Al-Aazam cancer and oncology hospital's unfinished building, a day after it was hit in a US strike in Yemen's northern Saada province on March 25, 2025. (AFP)
A Yemeni man inspects the damage in the Al-Rasul Al-Aazam cancer and oncology hospital's unfinished building, a day after it was hit in a US strike in Yemen's northern Saada province on March 25, 2025. (AFP)

Houthi media in Yemen reported Wednesday at least 17 strikes in Saada and Amran, blaming the United States for the attacks.

The group's Ansarollah website said US warplanes carried out "aggressive air raids... causing material damage to citizens' property", but gave no details of casualties.

Washington on March 15 announced a military offensive against the Iranian-backed Houthis, promising to use overwhelming force until the group stopped firing on vessels in the key shipping routes of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

That day saw a wave of US air strikes that officials said killed senior Houthi leaders, and which the militants' health ministry said killed 53 people.

Since then, Houthi-held parts of Yemen have witnessed near-daily attacks that the group has blamed on the United States, with the group announcing the targeting of US military ships and Israel.

The Houthis began targeting shipping vessels after the start of the Gaza war, claiming solidarity with Palestinians, but paused their campaign when a ceasefire took effect in Gaza in January.

Earlier this month, they threatened to renew attacks in the vital maritime trade route over Israel's aid blockade on the Palestinian territory, triggering the first US strikes on Yemen since President Donald Trump took office in January.

Last week, Trump threatened to annihilate the Houthis and warned Tehran against continuing to aid the group.