ISLAMABAD: Pakistan condemns Houthi attacks on merchant vessels and seafarers navigating the Bab Al-Mandab Strait, its United Nations (UN) envoy said on Thursday, reaffirming Islamabad’s support for Saudi Arabia’s sovereignty, territorial integrity amid growing tensions in the region.

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis have intensified attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Bab Al-Mandab as well as energy and civilian infrastructure in Saudi Arabia in recent weeks, raising fears of a wider regional conflict after reports suggested that the United States and Israeli forces had drawn up plans for possible strikes against Iran following the US midterm elections on Nov. 3.

Disruptions to maritime traffic and attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and Bab Al-Mandab have highlighted the vulnerability of critical maritime routes and their far-reaching implications for regional and global security. The attacks have raised concerns over the security of vital supply chains, posing risks to energy supplies, food security and economic stability of several nations.

Speaking at a UN Security Council’s debate on ‘Emerging Technologies and Maritime Security: Implications for Peace and Security,’ Pakistan’s acting permanent representative, Ambassador Usman Jadoon, said attacks on merchant vessels threatened maritime security and undermined regional peace.

“Pakistan strongly condemns the nefarious designs by Houthi militia to weaponize Bab-Al-Mandab, attacking merchant shipping and seafarers navigating the strait,” the Pakistani diplomat said.

“These attacks undermine maritime security and threaten peace and development of regional countries, especially that of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which has faced blatant aggression by the Houthis.”

Reiterating Islamabad’s position on the security of regional states, Jadoon said Pakistan firmly supported the sovereignty and territorial integrity of countries affected by instability in the region’s strategic waterways.

“Pakistan reaffirms its unwavering support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom and stands in complete solidarity with its leadership and people,” he said.

The increase in attacks by Houthi rebels follows the breakdown of an uneasy four-year truce between the internationally backed government of Yemen and the militant group in July, compounded by wider regional escalation between the US and Iran.

The conflict in Yemen, which erupted in late 2014 when the Houthis seized Sanaa, has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives and plunged the Arabian Peninsula’s poorest nation into one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.