Since 2017, Houthi have been perfecting their use of maritime drones to conduct attacks against maritime vessels and port facilities in the region.
However, sources report that several governments and private maritime firms are taking measures to counter the threat of maritime drones.
More specifically, better intelligence sharing and evasive tactics along with proactive measures including electronic jamming, water cannons, and boat nets.
What is more, open source research revealed 24 successful or attempted Houthi maritime drone attacks between January 2017 and June 2021. Mapping these attacks can offer some generalizations about target and location.
In fact, the majority of all Houthi maritime drone attacks were directed at commercial shipping vessels such as tankers or freight carriers.
Now, the first step to defend these attacks is to maximize situational awareness for both military and civilian vessels. This means keeping track of recent attacks, actively seeking intelligence reports through open source services, and then sharing this information widely.
For this reason, maritime security experts should be alert to the risk that technologies currently deployed by the Houthis will spread to other seas.
