Navigating troubled waters: The Red Sea crisis, food insecurity, and conflict
The ongoing attacks on shipping in the Red Sea by the Houthi rebels in Yemen serve as a reminder of how easily global supply networks may be disrupted. Furthermore, it draws attention to the ways in which food insecurity may both contribute to and result from war. The international community needs to act swiftly to solve this by combining its hard and soft power and reducing the push and pull forces that contribute to violence, terrorism, and piracy, among other things. One of these reasons is food poverty itself.
Overview of the Red Sea region
“When all people, at all times, have physical, social, and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life,” is how the UN Food and Agriculture Organization defines food security. According to recent UN estimates, between 691 million and 783 million people lack access to food, many of whom live in unstable and conflict-affected areas. There had been previous disruptions to Red Sea marine trade before this most recent one. The marine region under question is called Bab el-Mandeb, which means “the gate of lamentations” or “the gate of grief” in Arabic. Millions of people who depend on the life-giving supplies passing through this tight strait are grieving, and their sorrow may possibly continue in the current scene of the maritime drama.
Disruption of Food Supply Chains:
The Houthis’ obstruction of Red Sea marine commerce has already had a major impact on international trade and the cost of commodities for some countries. The amount of container traffic has decreased, and 95% of the cargo that used to pass via the Red Sea is now frequently rerouted across Africa, sometimes adding 5000 kilometers to the journey.
Already, the extra distance is dramatically raising the price of necessities like food, medication, and gasoline. The assaults in the Red Sea are driving up the cost of agricultural and food inputs for the same reason. Cost hikes of this sort have the potential to worsen food security concerns for the world’s most vulnerable populations and trigger the kinds of knock-on effects that weaken security and prosperity and stoke conflict.
Climate change and environmental degradation
With the hijacking of the Israeli-affiliated ship Galaxy Leader on November 19, the US launched the multinational Operation Prosperity Guardian to defend maritime safety in the waters surrounding Yemen in response to Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea. A resolution adopted on January 10 by the UN Security Council seemed to support the operation implicitly. The US and Britain began attacking Houthi targets in Yemen the next day. Around the eight most significant maritime chokepoints in the globe, it seems improbable that any state, maybe with the exception of Iran, whose regime has formed on this topic in the Strait of Hormuz, would employ such methods. The Horn of Africa’s Bab el-Mandeb, the Persian Gulf’s Strait of Hormuz, Egypt’s Suez Canal, Panama’s Panama Canal, Spain’s Gibraltar Strait, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia’s Strait of Malacca, Turkey’s Turkish Straits, and South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope are among them.
Humanitarian response and assistance efforts
The marine strikes have enhanced the Houthis’ notoriety, whether intentional or not. The Houthis may serve as an inspiration to other non-state actors in their pursuit of military, ideological, and political goals through these attacks. The terrorist organizations that operate in and around Bab el-Mandeb are especially concerning. Events in the Red Sea serve as a reminder of the significance that food shortage plays in war, even beyond the immediate threat posed by maritime terrorism and insurgency.
“There is plenty of information on how conflict impacts food security, but there is very little evidence on how food insecurity can drive conflict or how food security might contribute to the building of more peaceful societies,” as former WFP executive director David Beasley put it. However, there are instances where food insecurity is associated with conflict-promoting factors, such as the enlistment of fighters, mortality and morbidity rates that erode social stability in already precarious societies, land and water disputes in resource-constrained environments, and the mass displacement of those experiencing food insecurity. The Somali famine of 1992 served as an example of how food shortage might exacerbate social, political, or economic instability.
Conclusion
In conclusion, The terrible irony of the Houthi bombings is that 17 million people in Yemen are food insecure, and there is widespread hunger in the country. Without a doubt, Yemen’s peace and stability have continued to be threatened by food shortages. The battle there has made it worse and has been used to radicalize Yemenis in favor of the Houthis. If strikes against Houthi locations and facilities are carried out in violation of the Security Council resolution or as part of Operation Prosperity Guardian, the humanitarian crisis in Yemen may worsen. This is especially the case if people or civilian infrastructure is targeted.
