Washington reiterates the need for the Houthis to permanently end their attacks in the Red Sea

The United States of America reiterated the need for the Houthis to permanently end their attacks on international shipping vessels in the Red Sea and surrounding waterways.

This came during a phone call between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Omani Foreign Minister Badr Al-Busaidi on Monday, during which they discussed the situation in the region, including Yemen.

The US State Department said in a statement that Secretary Rubio discussed with his Omani counterpart "the importance of permanently ending unlawful Houthi attacks in the Red Sea and surrounding waterways."

The Minister also expressed his thanks for Oman’s decisive and timely facilitation of the release of the crew of the MV Galaxy Leader, who had been illegally detained by the Houthis for more than a year.

It is noteworthy that the Sultanate of Oman, which permanently hosts Houthi leaders, has great influence over the Iranian-backed Houthi militia, and has been facilitating indirect negotiations for years between the United States and the Houthis, who are on the US list of foreign terrorist organizations.

During more than a year of Israel's war on Gaza, the Houthi militia targeted dozens of ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, including American ships. The United States responded by forming an international naval coalition that led air operations against the Houthis' capabilities in Yemen throughout the past year, before the two sides entered an undeclared truce with the start of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza in mid-January.