Traffic through Suez Canal has slowed, driving the cost of goods up, and impacting the two countries’ economies.
When Frenchman Ferdinand de Lesseps suggested connecting the Red and Mediterranean seas by building the Suez Canal, his idea was clear: a shorter shipping route from Asia to Europe and a source of income from transit fees.
The idea was welcomed by Egypt’s khedive, Ismail Pasha, and the Suez Canal opened in 1869. Since then, it has become one of the most important maritime routes in the world.
On November 19, about six weeks into Israel’s war on Gaza, when Yemen’s Houthis began attacking ships they said were linked to Israel as they passed through the Red Sea to Suez.
The Houthis said their actions would continue until Israel ended its war on Gaza.
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