Maersk navigates Red Sea route again as Gaza ceasefire holds

Maersk said on Monday that another of its vessels successfully navigated the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait, weeks after it tested the route as a ceasefire in Gaza raised hopes for normal shipping traffic.

Shipping companies are weighing a return to the critical Asia-Europe trade corridor more than two years after they started rerouting vessels around Africa's Cape of Good Hope following Yemeni Houthi rebels' attacks on ships in the Red Sea in what they said was a show of solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza.

"On 11-12 January 2026, the US-flagged vessel Maersk Denver, voyage 552W, currently operating on the MECL service, successfully transited the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and into the Red Sea," Maersk said in a statement.

Maersk's containership Sebarok navigated the route for the first time in nearly two years in December.