The European Union's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on Friday the EU naval mission in the Red Sea Operation Aspides has raised the alert level of its vessels after the situation in the area has worsened, Reuters reported. Kallas also said that she had spoken with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud about diplomatic efforts to end the fighting in Yemen and restore freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. "Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia are unacceptable and sabotage the global economy," she said in a post on X, adding that Europe is helping protect maritime traffic in the Red Sea from Houthi attacks. Yemeni government forces continue to fend off concerted Houthi attempts to seize the highlands east of the Bab al-Mandab Strait and west of Taiz. The group is seeking to secure its positions around the strait, Perim Island and the western coast by capturing mountainous areas that would provide strategic depth on land and fortify its lines of movement and supply. A military source in the Taiz Military Axis said the clashes had killed 30 Houthis and wounded more than 60 others, in addition to destroying six combat vehicles and two tanks.
